Harry gasped as the memories disappeared when haunted grey eyes flashed in pain, suddenly shifting away. The slight lingering pain in his scar vanished completely as he did, leaving Harry breathing heavily.

"What was that...why are you crying?" Ron's usual lack of tact alerted Harry to the fact that, yes, he was indeed crying, but he didn't care about that as he immediately sought out Sirius.

"You..."

"I..I'm sorry, I hadn't realised you remembered that," the man whispered, pale as a sheet and shaking slightly, clearly having seen and heard the same thing he had. "I'd have shielded you from it if I'd known."

"I didn't...I mean," Harry stuttered, unable to get rid of the image of a much younger and healthier version of the man before him that his younger self had desperately tried to reach as Hagrid had taken him away on that motorbike. "Hagrid would've hurt me, that's why you gave in to his demand to take me."

"Hagrid often doesn't know his own strength and he...I couldn't let him hurt you," Sirius swallowed thickly, breaking eye contact with him. But suddenly Harry couldn't stop himself and before he knew what he was doing he had crossed the distance Sirius had put between them and threw his arms around the man's middle.

He could feel Sirius start at the unexpected action, but thin arms wrapped around him in return almost immediately and held him tightly.

"H-how's your head?" Sirius softly asked after several moments had passed, one of his hands shifting to squeeze Harry's shoulder.

"Its fine, no pain any more. What did you do?" Clearing his throat, Harry stepped away from Sirius again, from his godfather, but not too far.

Where before he'd felt a desire to be close to him, everything in him now screamed to not let him out of his sight again, never again as he knew he loved the man standing across of him more than anything.

They might have been separated for twelve years, but Harry knew without a doubt that at Sirius' side was where he belonged and where he wanted to be. And he also knew that the man in turn loved him as well and would do anything for him. The memories that had been pushed to the front from his subconscious had made that much clear to him.

"Your scar was a Horcrux. But it's gone now."

"My...what?" Horrified Harry looked up to his godfather. "How?"

"I'm not sure, but I know he originally made six of them."

"Six?!" Madam Pomfrey, McGonagall and Amelia exclaimed horrified. "How can you be so sure?"

"I locked onto the one in Harry's scar to check. But they are all gone now."

"H-how?" Kingsley stared at him in what could only be explained as awe.

"Phoenix tears," Sirius held up the now empty phial and stroked Fawkes' head again. "To destroy a Horcrux, you need something that damages it beyond repair. So while connected to the Horcrux in Harry's scar, I inserted the tears into it, destroying the others in a chain reaction with ancient magic."

"But I've been subjected to Fawkes' tears before, last year when I got stabbed by the Basilisk tooth," Harry objected. "Why was it not destroyed then?"

"Because that was on your arm, and remind me that I'll kill Dumbledore for knowingly endangering his students," Sirius rubbed a hand over his face. "The tears soaked into the wound in your arm and even if they'd have reached the Horcrux, it wouldn't have destroyed it as it would need to be inserted directly."

"Like you did now," Harry noted. "What does it mean?"

"If I'm right, it means Voldemort is no longer anchored to this world and truly gone for good," Sirius frowned. "I'm not sure how to check that, though."

"The destruction of a Horcrux leaves a mark at the place it's destroyed, the same would be the case with the main soul," Peeves informed them. "But I wouldn't know where to begin searching for them."

"Quirrell said he ran into Voldemort in the forests of Albania," Harry offered, eyeing the Poltergeist still a bit warily. "But that was before he possessed the man."

"It's likely that he would return there, it are familiar grounds," Kingsley nodded. "If he is truly gone, then there should be a trace of it if he's truly returned there."

"We will contact the Albanian Ministry of Magic to inquire about it," Amelia agreed. "But even if we get confirmation, I think it might be wiser to keep it from the general public. They believe You-Know-Who is gone, so there is no need to alarm them for nothing."

"Especially not if you wouldn't want to make Horcruxes common knowledge. Right now there are only a handful of people left who know what they are," Sirius sighed. "The only reason I know about them is because the Black family was obsessed about dark magic and my father made me read about it all the time."

"You read about it in a book?"

"An ancient and very rare book. There are only five known copies in the world and the Black family owned four. I can travel to the Ancestry house and destroy them in chain fire in case there's copies we don't know about," Sirius offered.

"That would be best, but we still haven't heard the children's testimonies," Amelia cleared her throat. "I have to admit; when Minerva requested our presence I would never have expected any of this to come to light."

"It is a good thing it did," Kingsley shot a glance to the side and Harry was startled to realise Fudge was there, he'd completely forgotten about the man with all that had happened. But the Minister was still unconscious and completely oblivious to what was going on.

"Yes, well...he can stay like that for a little while longer before we take him into custody for the vote of no confidence Sirius placed upon his name. Shall we finally start with the interrogations?"

After they'd been separated and had each told the story of what had happened that afternoon, the two Ministry workers took Pettigrew and Fudge and left to arrange the trials for the next morning after a squad of Aurors had been summoned to arrest Dumbledore.

Amelia said it was because she didn't want the man to walk around freely for another minute after all he'd done, but Harry had a suspicion she was afraid he'd get wind of what was going on and would run or manipulate more people.

As it was, the man hadn't seen anything coming as no of the portrait had bothered to warn him and he was placed into custody without a problem as Kingsley knocked him out almost immediately to prevent complications.

Harry and Sirius were both thoroughly checked over by Madam Pomfrey, fed multiple potions before Sirius was steered towards the showers by McGonagall.

Not that the man had needed much persuasion as he'd eagerly disappeared through the door after Harry promised he'd still be there when he returned and Peeves and Fawkes stayed at his side.

It was the better part of an hour before the man returned, but he looked completely different when he did. Dressed in a clean black robe that was much too big on him; his skin pink from being rubbed at thoroughly and his hair was shiny and completely clean, if clearly uneven now.

But Madam Pomfrey made quick work of fixing that for him and nodded approvingly at the sight of him as Peeves and Fawkes left, the former promising to warn a House-elf to retrieve something to eat for them.

It was decided upon to keep them all in the hospital wing, McGonagall said it was for their own safety but Harry suspected she didn't want the news of Sirius being there to come out yet as gossip travelled at lightning speed here.

But he wasn't complaining as he sat down next to his godfather as they ate, for the first time hearing the whole story of how Sirius had realised Pettigrew was at Hogwarts, showing them the newspaper clipping he'd had of Ron's family in Egypt.

He told Harry how he, Harry's father and the rat had discovered Lupin's secret in their second year and had decided to become Animagi.

Harry had laughed himself silly as the man told him about their missteps, McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey unable to contain their horror at the descriptions and commented on things they'd seen during the progress that now finally made sense.

Harry wasn't aware he had eventually nodded off to sleep until he woke up several hours later at soft voices.

For a long moment he didn't know where he was, resting against someone's legs as fingers carefully caressed through his hair, a gesture so unfamiliar but full of love and care that Harry couldn't help but instinctively snuggle closer, when someone chuckled above him.

Immediately recognising the sound of the voice, Harry shot up.

"Sirius!"

"Good morning," warm grey eyes smiled at him amused, making Harry realise he'd fallen asleep against the man and a blush shot across his cheeks. "Did you sleep well?"

"Y-yes," Harry couldn't help but answer the warm smile with one of his own, turning surprised as someone else gave a muffled cough.

Professor Lupin was sitting in the chair beside the bed, Madam Pomfrey and McGonagall nowhere to be seen.

"Professor," Harry blinked as Sirius pulled a face and Lupin gave a faint smile. "What..."

"Sorry, it's just weird to hear you call him that. You used to call him Mooey and Remy when you were little," Sirius explained. "To hear you refer to him as Professor now is a bit odd."

Vaguely remembering half memories his godfather had accidentally unleashed the day before, he cleared his throat as he decided to be tactical. "What do you prefer to be called?"

"I don't want you to feel uncomfortable, I'm basically a stranger to you," Remus echoed words Sirius had told him earlier, but Harry shrugged him off.

"You are the man who secretly gave me chocolate when Mum wasn't looking and let me destroy the sand towers you built," Harry smiled faintly at the man's surprise. "Sirius accidentally pulled forth some old memories I didn't know I had."

"I see, that may be. Well...if it's not uncomfortable for you, perhaps you could just call me Remus? Outside of class, that is," the man returned his smile.

"I can work on that," Harry nodded. "So, eh...how did the full moon go?"

"A lot less eventful than things were here, or so I heard," Lup-Remus said. "It's hard to believe all the things Dumbledore did."

"Yeah, any news about the trial yet?" Harry turned to Sirius, accepting the sandwich the man handed him.

"Amelia sent notice that we have to be there at nine, in two hours time, but requested us to come a bit earlier so that we can be prepared in the anteroom on how things are going to proceed. Loud Mouth and Wild Hair won't be allowed to be present, but if you want you can come to the Ministry with Remus and wait outside, if they won't let you inside."

"Loud Mouth and Wild Hair?" Harry choked out a laugh, as Sirius flushed and Lu-Remus snorted. "Why..."

"Sorry, it's how Crook referred to them whenever we spoke. I've been hearing those names for months so it's hard to get rid of them. Ron and Hermione, right?"

"Yeah. You mentioned that you communicated with Crookshanks before, but it's clear to me that you didn't talk to him like you and I are doing right now or you'd have known his full name. So how did you communicate?"

"Through impressions, feelings and vague words. A broomstick is a sweeping brush to animals and an owl is a message bringer. It's complicated to explain and although Crook tried to explain, he never managed to communicate his entire name, but didn't mind me calling him Crook."

"How did you communicate your own name to him?" Harry asked interested.

"The pad part was actually fairly easy as it's a common word for animals, but they have no concept of the word foot. Animals have paws and refer to them as such, but eventually I managed to get my meaning across by turning back into a human and repeating it under he got it. A lot of it is pure guessing and more than once I accidentally offended him. But luckily he realised I didn't mean to but was just rubbish at communicating."

"It's still amazing, although it would be better if you didn't call them that to their faces," Harry smiled.

"Because the boy has a short temper?" Sirius glanced at Lu-Remus. "Not to mention is prejudiced?"

"Not everyone is as accepting as you and Harry are, Siri," L-Remus reached out to place a hand on Sirius' biceps with a small smile. "You always did get madder than I did when people displayed their prejudice."

"Because it's utterly stupid. Everyone is equal and those who claim their blood is purer and feel better than they are, are hypocrites," Sirius grumbled.

"Are you a Pure-Blood?" Harry asked interested.

"That's a matter of opinion," Sirius looked at him. "Many Pure-Bloods believed in only marrying in respected pure-blood circles, meaning they had to marry their own cousins. They believed it would keep their blood pure while in reality it leads to instability and mental problems. Muggle and Half-Blood blood is much purer than ours in my opinion."

"Pure-Bloods marry their own cousins?" Harry asked disgusted.

"All the Pure-Blood families are related somehow."

"You mean Dad was related to you?" Harry looked up to his godfather.

"Yes, and so are we. His mother was my grandfather's sister, making us cousins. But closer than that, your grandparents and your father officially adopted me into their family, making me your uncle as well."

"Does that mean I should call you Uncle Sirius?" Harry teased, fairly sure the man would be mortified by the mere idea and wasn't let down as he stuck out his tongue at him playfully.

"But what do you say?" L-Remus asked. "Would you like to come to the Ministry with me and wait for the outcome of Sirius' trial with me there?"

"Would McGonagall let me, Professor?" Harry silently cursed himself as he slipped on the name again, but L-Remus only shot him a knowing smile.

"I don't see how she can object when your guardian would like you to be there," he answered.

"Right, then I'd like to come," Harry hesitated, although Sirius had pressed charges against Dumbledore for kidnapping him, it didn't mean the man wanted him with him now. "What will happen after you are cleared?"

"We'll first get you a new wardrobe and then it depends."

"On?" Harry's heart hammered in his throat.

"On you, really," Remus spoke up. "I've offered to Sirius that the two of you can come stay with me for a while until he gets himself inserted back into society and you can calmly search for a house you'll both like."

"But if you don't want that, I'll take you to a rental house for now until we've hunted down an apartment or house," Sirius shifted, Harry's heart jumping as his expression tightened. "I won't lie to you and tell you we'll be perfectly happy together without any hitches. I've spend twelve years in jail; in complete solitude and I don't know how I'll react to being inserted into a normal life."

"Because Azkaban is a terrifying place that leaves even the sanest person shaken," Harry said grimly. "Hagrid was locked up there a few weeks last year and the mere mentioning of that place still leaves him in cold sweat."

"It is a horrible place," Sirius agreed readily. "I'll do my best to perhaps find some help and work through all that's happened, but I might not be the sanest company all the time. And you have your own problems, coming from a house I'd rather burn to the ground, and likely need time to adjust as well."

"Meaning it would be smarter to stay with Pro- Remus for the time being," Harry looked at the two men. "I have no problem with that at all. So that means I don't have to return to the Dursleys?"

"Not in this life-time," L-Remus actually growled, making Harry look at him surprised. "I had no idea Sirius had appointed me as your guardian."

"I cannot begin to explain how sorry I am for leaving you with the Dursleys. After Sirius was arrested, I contacted Dumbledore about you, but he told me you were in safe hands and it would be better if there was no contact," the man hesitated. "And I believed him, never trying to find you because he had said it was safer for you."

"And because you trusted Dumbledore, you followed his lead," Harry shrugged. "Sirius told me how Dumbledore allowed you to come to Hogwarts and that made you loyal to him."

"I may be grateful to him for what he's done, but he does not hold my loyalty. Not any more," L-Remus growled again and Harry eyed him warily.

"Don't worry, he often does that the morning after the full moon," Sirius reassured him teasingly. "The tiredness and paleness are usual the day of and after the full moon as well."

"Right, so I should get used to him growling once a month and looking horrible," Harry chuckled as L-Remus mock-glared at him, easily feeling more comfortable around the other man as he watched the two interact. His Defence teacher seemed a lot happier now than Harry had ever seen him before. "Any other things I should be aware of?"

"Not that I can think of right now, but how about we have Yuri's tonight after the trial is over to celebrate Sirius' freedom and discuss things further?" L-Remus suggested.

"Yuri's?"

"Yuri Yumi-Yum Chinese Take-Away," Sirius answered. "It's a restaurant run by Chinese Wizards, they deliver at home and it's something your father and we often ordered when we'd make it late."

"But Madam Pomfrey said you had to take it calmly with food, didn't she?" Harry worriedly looked at his godfather, not having forgotten the woman's stern warnings about what types of food he'd eat.

"I'll stick to plain rice without added herbs," Sirius assured him softly. "I don't fancy being sick so I will be careful and she's already handed me a list of what I am and am not allowed, along with what kind of potions we both need to take to become healthy again."

"Great," Harry pulled a face, glancing around him to find Hermione and Ron were both sleeping on other beds and his gaze fell upon Snape. "What's the matter with him?"

"He's just a lazy git," Sirius grumbled. "Poppy says he's got a severe concussion, but she's keeping him sedated while we're here."

"You don't sound really remorseful about that," Harry snickered as his godfather shrugged.

"There is only so many times someone can try to get you either killed or in trouble before you stop caring if they live or not," a mischievous glint appeared in the man's eyes. "And I've always wanted to bash his head him and now I kind of have so it's a win-win situation."

"I bet," Harry laughed, relishing in the memory of Snape falling like a sack of potatoes.

"Are you guys ready?" they all looked up to see McGonagall in the door-opening.

"I've been ready for years," Sirius smiled as they rose to their feet.

"Do we need to warn Hermione and Ron that we are leaving?" Harry wondered as they made her way to the Floo with her.

"Madam Pomfrey will inform them where you've gone when they wake up. But they won't be allowed to join as they have no personal attachment to the trial."

"Does that mean I'll be allowed inside the room?" Harry asked hopefully, hesitating as McGonagall held out the Floo powder to him.

"Maybe, have you travelled with the Floo before?" Sirius looked at him.

"Yeah, once. But I ended up in Knockturn Alley instead of Diagon Alley," biting his lip, Harry looked up to his godfather. Mrs Weasley had been upset with his mistake, having clearly believed he'd done it on purpose despite saying he hadn't. So he was a little nervous to how Sirius would react, surprised when the man laughed.

"That's better than your dad, he ended up in Devon instead of Alton," Sirius grinned. "You came out in Scotland, didn't you?"

"You're kidding!" Harry breathed out relieved to learn that he wasn't the only one travelling to the wrong destination on their first travels as L-Remus nodded.

"It's fairly normal to misjudge your stop on the first travel, anyone who claims to have gotten it right in one go is definitely lying."

"I ended up in the home of an elderly woman in Yorkshire, she was very angry that I came in unannounced until she realised it was my first travel," McGonagall confirmed Sirius' words. "Most magical families have magical protections against unexpected children appearing in their fireplace now."

"What about Mum?"

"Believe it or not, she ended up in your Dad's living room."

"Mum travelled to Dad's house?" Harry stared at two simultaneous nods in disbelief. "Of all the places..."

"James called it fate; Lily called it the first layer of hell. She was fourteen at the time and really disliked your Dad because she believed him to be an arrogant git," Sirius paused. "Well..he was a little arrogant, so she was half right."

"But if magical families have protections...how?"

"She tried to travel from her friend Alice's house, a family friendly with the Potters so their Floos were connected. You need to connect your Floo to another place before you can travel there or you'll just bounce back if you haven't got permission," Sirius explained. "Though some people still accidentally slip through despite the protections as most are set on intruders and not accidental visits."

"Ah, I had expected you to be angry or upset with me, Mrs Weasley was when I ended up in Knockturn Alley," Harry admitted.

"Did you know where you stepped off?"

"No, I had no idea where I was until Hagrid plucked me off the street and took me back to Diagon Alley where I should be, berating me for being there."

"That's just stupid. It's not like you did it on purpose so you didn't deserve to be told off," Sirius paused. "Just make sure you never go there on purpose."

"I rather not," Harry easily agreed, turning to Sirius. "Where did you end up?"

"He ended up in an upper-class Muggle neighbourhood," McGonagall smiled as Sirius flushed. "I remember because it caused quite an uproar and even the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes had to be notified to Obliviate the Muggles involved as he came out in the middle of a fancy dress party with lots of guests. It made the paper and it might still be in the library in one of the old Prophets."

"It was completely exaggerated. It was one house and they only had to Obliviate fifteen Muggles who saw me arrive after I myself warned the authorities, I might add," Sirius grumbled. "And that was despite most Muggles believing I'd tumbled into the chimney from the roof, son of one of the serving staff and were just relieved I hadn't gotten burned by the flames."

"You should have seen the Prophet 'Black heir causes uproar in Muggle town', it was like he had committed a heavy crime, it got so much publicity," L-Remus snickered. "We looked it up after he finally told us about his first Floo travel."

"I got my head chewed off by my parents for daring to enter a filthy Muggle town, like I had done it on purpose...stop laughing."

Harry tried unsuccessfully to smother his laughter. "How old were you?"

"Five, I was ordered to go to my grandfather's house. I still have no idea how I ended up half-way across the country and in a Muggle town I had never even heard of."

Harry's laughter quickly subdued as he eyed the Floo again.

"You know what? I'm a little rusty in this, so why don't we travel together?" Sirius suggested and although Harry knew everyone could see through the half-hearted excuse easily, he happily accepted the offer and together they stepped in.

"Keep your hands to your side," Sirius ordered. "And it might be wise to close your eyes so you won't become nauseous."

"Then how do you know you've arrived?"

"If you feel yourself to start slowing down, push out your right hand a little and you'll come to a complete stop at your destination without tumbling forward. When you say your destination clearly, you can't stop elsewhere. And raise your head and to the right to say where you want to go while throwing the powder on the left so you won't swallow a mouthful of ash," Sirius advised as he handed Harry the powder. "We're going to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Amelia Bones' office."

"Can we just Floo into her office directly?"

"Good question, normally no, but we've received her Floo address for this occasion."

"Right," following Sirius' instructions he closed his eyes and before he knew it he came to a slow stop, blinking surprised as Amelia and Kingsley were both waiting for them across the room.

"I did it!" he exclaimed cheerfully, looking up to his godfather as the man guided him out of the fireplace.

"Well done," Sirius smiled and Harry glowed under the compliment, eager to make the man proud.

"Was that your first time?" Amelia smiled as she greeted them.

"Second time, first time didn't go so well last year," Harry blushed.

"Ah, first times rarely do," Amelia sighed. "Susan turned up in a place no child should ever step foot in, luckily the owners were quick to inform us where she was and kept her by the Floo."

Harry wasn't entirely sure what she meant, but as Sirius and Kingsley both winced he knew it couldn't have been anywhere good.

"I ended up in Knockturn Alley, he ended up in a Muggle town," Harry gleefully told her, no longer ashamed of where he'd ended up as both simply laughed before sobering as McGonagall and L-Remus travelled through.

"You must be Remus?"

"Remus Lupin, yes. And you are Madam Bones and Kingsley Shacklebolt?"

"The one and only, you were updated already?" They shook hands.

"Yes, Sirius has told me all that's happened. Am I right to assume we can sit in on the trial?"

"Normally non-relatives are not allowed, but from what I've heard you are his family and are accompanying Mister Potter?"

"That's correct, am I not needed as a witness?" L-Remus asked.

"It is possibly needed at Dumbledore's trial as Sirius filed an induct for kidnapping and he's kept Mister Potter from his rightful guardians, despite knowing the precautions Sirius had taken. For the same reason Minerva might be needed, but we're not sure yet. During Sirius' trial you will be allowed to sit in the room, but you'll have to stay in the anteroom during Dumbledore's trial in case you are indeed needed."

"Understood."

Most of Sirius' trial was rather straightforward and although Harry couldn't believe the initial animosity directed at his godfather by most members at the trial, that quickly turned to horror as the truth was revealed and the animosity shifted to Pettigrew instead.

In no time Sirius was cleared of all charges against him and although he was charged with being an illegal Animagus, the court voted unanimously that he had paid thoroughly for that and would receive a large sum of money for the injustice done to him.

Pettigrew however was immediately convicted to the Kiss after he gave a full testimony about his initiation process as a Death Eater, other Death Eaters he knew and other crimes he had committed.

There was quite an uproar as several respected members of the community were named; like Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Avery, Snape and other people Harry had never heard off.

Aurors were sent out immediately to arrest the individuals Pettigrew mentioned for new questioning under Veritaserum while Fudge was led in for Sirius' accusations, proving right as the man had kept people from their rights, like Hagrid's right to a trial, and was as a result of his testimony relieved of his duty and convicted to twenty years in Azkaban.

Amelia had even already followed up on Sirius' lead that that Crouch guy had smuggled his son out of Azkaban as the man was brought to trial as well, his son already in a holding cell to be returned to Azkaban.

But it wasn't until Dumbledore's trial that people were truly left shocked and shaken.

Harry spent it in the court with Sirius while Remus and McGonagall had been relocated to the anteroom and Harry was shocked just how badly he had misjudged the Headmaster.

The man had manipulated more people than Harry could have ever imagined and while people had trusted him unconditionally, he had used his position to strategically take out those who might have opposed him by leading them to their deaths.

Pettigrew had been right that Dumbledore had wanted to control Harry and he held onto Sirius' hand tightly as the man confessed to setting up the murders of both Harry's parents, but also his grandparents and attempting to do the same to Sirius before knowingly condemning an innocent man to Azkaban.

In the end, the man was sentenced to Azkaban for life, under very strict spells and with Dementors present inside his cell every moment of the day.

It was a harsh and horrifying punishment, but Harry couldn't feel any pity for the old man as he now knew he was the one responsible for his family's death and his godfather's horrible fate.

Sirius seemed to hunch into himself every time the doors opened and the Aurors let another suspect into the waiting hands of the Dementors Amelia had lucky ordered to remain outside.

Harry knew how horrible the effect of those creatures was and was relieved Amelia had the insight to keep them as far away from Sirius as possible. He held one of Sirius' hands as he was squashed between him and Remus once he joined them, not complaining as he knew the man needed him to be safe between people he trusted right now.

Remus' arm was wrapped around Harry to hold onto Sirius as well, providing additional comfort as they listened to Dumbledore scream at them how they couldn't do this and he was their leader.

"Let's return to Hogwarts," McGonagall eventually found her voice from Sirius' other side, surprisingly holding onto his other hand tightly enough that both of their hands were white.

"No," Sirius cleared his throat. "I'm not leaving until it's been made official that Harry belongs with me or will go to the two of you if something happens to me. I'm not taking any more chances."

Swallowing thickly, Harry let himself be pulled into his godfather's embrace, holding onto him tightly for a long moment before they rose to their feet and quickly arranged what Sirius wanted.

After that they made a quick stop at the police office where Sirius filed charges against the Dursleys for child abuse and aiding in the abduction of a child from his rightful guardian.

Pictures were taken of Harry and Remus left his address with the police as they would open an investigation that they assured them would lead to both adults spending time in jail and Dudley in the care of a foster parent as Marge Dursley was quickly deemed unfit as a guardian.

It wasn't until they'd arrived back at Hogwarts and Harry informed Hermione and Ron about what had happened that something else occurred to him. It might have been because Hermione mentioned something along the line, or because he saw Hagrid passing through the window but he suddenly had to think about Buckbeak.

"Just another death Dumbledore allowed to happen," Hermione said.

"Who are you talking about?" Sirius asked.

"Hagrid's Hippogriff. He was killed this afternoon by the Ministry, wrongfully accused of hurting Malfoy while it was truly his own fault," Hermione sniffed.

"Ah, no...I kind of released him," Sirius smiled sheepishly. "I followed you guys to his cabin and when Fudge and his men arrived at the door and you left through the back, I came closer to hear what it was about. When I heard they were going to execute him, I bit through the rope on his neck and told him to run, which he did."

"You..." Hermione let out a squeak and suddenly threw her arms around Sirius in a hug, heavily startling the poor man. "Thank you!"

"How did you know he was innocent?" Ron beamed as Sirius pulled away from Hermione.

Harry tried to suppress a smile as the man put some distance between her and him so she couldn't fly at him again, something Harry could completely understand as he was always thrown for a loop by Hermione's hugs as well.

"It sounded absurd for an animal to be executed for a class accident, especially since I overheard the complaint was made by Lucius Malfoy. And from the fact that Harry visited right before the execution, I just knew I had to try and save him."

"Where is he now?"

"Probably back in the forest, I told him to join his flock as most Wizards can't tell one Hippogriff from another," Sirius shrugged.

"Hagrid will be overjoyed when he learns Buckbeak is still alive," Harry's smile slightly dimmed as he remembered Hagrid had been the one who had forcefully withheld him from Sirius, his own memories telling him as much.

"They came in to arrest Snape this morning," Hermione pulled him out of his darker thoughts as they sat down at the table. "When they arrived, Madam Pomfrey healed his concussion and they shipped him off. Will we see him again?"

"No, even if he is released after a few years, he will no longer be welcome here," McGonagall spoke up. "I've been fighting Pro- Dumbledore for years on his appointment and now that his protector is gone, he will no longer be kept on as a teacher."

"Good, he's a lousy teacher," Ron grumbled, both Harry and Hermione agreeing immediately.

"What happens now? Will we get a new Potions Professor?"

"I've already found a new teacher, better qualified to teach," McGonagall informed the two and Harry couldn't help but beam.

"That's good, and you?" Hermione turned to Sirius.

"McGonagall has kindly offered for me to remain here at Hogwarts until the end of term and after that we'll go with Remus to his house and remain there for a while."

"You're going to need a job, aren't you?" Hermione frowned. "That won't be easy, will it?"

"Not likely, the Black family is loaded," Ron snorted as Sirius shrugged.

"Actually, Professor McGonagall has offered him a position here at Hogwarts next year. With Dumbledore in Azkaban, she's become Headmistress now and although she'll continue teaching for now, she needed a new Potions teacher," Harry beamed, still remembering the shock on his godfather's face at the offer.

He had been honoured when his godfather had asked his opinion on it before accepting the position and Harry looked forward to learn from the man he was quickly learning was extremely witty and brilliant.

"Did you accept? Why would you work when you don't have to?" Ron's eyes were wide.

"I'm not the type to sit around the house doing nothing and I have the whole summer to settle in. Remus will be here next year and the mere idea of being separated from Harry for most of the year when I've only just got him back is not one I even want to think about yet," Sirius admitted.

"Professor Lupin will return? But what about the curse on the position?" Hermione squeaked.

"Broken and honestly I can't believe it wasn't broken years ago already," Remus commented. "We had a look at it while the three of you spoke and it's so weak it's a miracle it held for so long. So I'll be back next year as well as Professor Flitwick easily broke the curse."

"That's great!" Hermione smiled even as Ron nervously shifted but smiled as well, unable to meet Remus' eyes.

But Harry ignored him as he beamed up at his godfather and the man who should have been his close uncle.

"I just need someone to take over Transfiguration in the long run," McGonagall sighed and Sirius turned to her.

"I am not sure if she'd still be interested, but my cousin Andromeda holds a degree in Potions and she's always wanted to teach. If you can get her on board, I could take over Transfiguration for you."

"You are certainly qualified for it, though you will need some practice to regain your old strength," McGonagall turned thoughtful. "But we'd have the last few weeks of term to work on that and I could visit in the summer if needed. I'll contact her later today to see if she's interested in the position. I assume she didn't get it because Dumbledore gave the position to Snape instead as I remember Horace had intended for her to take over from him at his retirement."

"Never liked that man," Sirius and Remus said in unison, making the teenagers laugh.

"Wait until you meet the twins, you'll love them," Harry laughed.

"Two red-heads? I've seen them a few times in places they really shouldn't be in," Sirius nodded.

"They gave Harry our old map, but seem to have memorised it thoroughly and use it to pull pranks," Remus smiled as Sirius' eyes lit up.

"Really? I look forward to meeting them then."

"Two Marauders and two prankster Weasleys in one place, the castle is doomed," McGonagall groaned.

"Three," Sirius corrected her. "You are sorely mistaken if you think I won't teach Harry all I know about pranks."

"What have I done," McGonagall choked out a half-laugh, but didn't truly seem upset as they all laughed.

Harry couldn't help but feel that the future looked a whole lot brighter with Sirius in his life and knowing the man had official custody of him now and he would never have to return to the Dursleys, Harry contently leaned against his godfather as they laughed.

All was well.