He had been skulking around Knockturn Alley ever since he arrived back on the mainland and was no closer to finding a single red headed member of the Weasley family than he started with. He knew he'd have better luck in Diagon, but he couldn't take the risk until he know if Moony told someone what he is. He'd been watching the news, nicking papers when he could, and knew that so far it hasn't been reported that he was an animagus. But surely Moony would tell someone soon though and then his cover would be blown.
And he had to find the rat first.
He figured that at some point he'd find or hear someone talking about the Weasley's and he could get an idea for where they lived in the summers. Arthur had a huge family, someone somewhere must know where they're located.
"Okay except I could never date one of the Weasley boys. Imagine how badly our hair would clash!"
Sirius perked up at that and excitedly wagged his tail. There was a girl, walking in to Knockturn with long dark red hair talking about Weasley's!
Finally!
Sirius went running up to the girl and her friend, a scrawny boy with dark hair, and started yipping to catch her attention.
"Awww! Hey there, good doggy! Harry, look!"
The scrawny dark haired boy turned and oh. It was Harry. James and Lily's Harry. Little baby Harry all grown up now. His Harry.
Harry still had Lily's eye shape, but his green eyes were darker than Lily's had been. He wore his hair long, in waves that reached his neck and could be pulled back in a small bundle if he tried. The color was all James, but Sirius was proud to see it was the same style he himself wore during his school days.
"Hey buddy, are you hungry?"
Sirius whined and jumped away from the hand that Harry reached out to him with. There was something about Harry that put him on edge. He tried to ignore it, but it was still a feeling all the same.
"Course it doesn't like me," Harry grumbled to his friend who was now scratching Sirius' back. "Dogs always hate me!"
Sirius suppressed the feeling of wrongness he got from Harry and slowly approached him. He nudged Harry's hand with his nose and looked at him with his big dog eyes.
I don't hate you.
"Aw, see? He likes you!"
Harry slowly rubbed his hands across Sirius' back, frowning at what he felt.
"He's starving!" Harry cried. "When's the last time you ate buddy? You feel like you're just all bone!"
Sirius whined. It had been a while since he's ate anything. Even longer since he's ate anything that wasn't out of the trash bins.
"C'mon, we can go get you some food," Harry said softly. "And then you can go shopping with us, yeah?"
Sirius let out a couple soft woofs! and wagged his tail ferociously.
Who would be looking for the escaped prison inmate by the side of Harry Potter?
"He likes us!" The red headed girl cheered. "Let's go back to the Leaky and get him something to eat."
"Alright," Harry agreed. "Cmon buddy, let's go feed you."
After Sirius scarfed down the food Harry bought him ("it's a steak because you need to put some meat on your bones" Harry chuckled) Sirius spent the next couple of hours running around Diagon keeping up with Harry and his friend Susan. Merlin, were all teenagers this exhausting or was Harry a special case? Harry seemed to have enough energy for three teens as he laughed, and jumped, and ran, and skipped between buildings pulling his friend along.
Eventually, after hours pleasantly spend chasing the two children and barking happily and futilely attempting to keep them out of Knockturn Alley (Sirius only tried halfheartedly really, exploring Knockturn was a rite of passage for all teens) Harry's friend Susan said she needed to get going.
"Auntie won't be happy if I'm out after dark," she pointed out.
"Yeah, 'spose Snape (Snape??) won't be happy either," Harry said glumly before perking up. "Hey! D'you think he'd be mad if I brought home a dog?"
"Probably," Susan laughed. "But you should do it anyway and take a photo when he sees the dog."
Harry laughed too, terribly amused at the idea apparently. Sirius took the opportunity to let out a small whimper of regret before slipping away quickly, unnoticed by either of the children.
He would have given anything to stay with Harry, anything at all. But finding Wormtail was more important. He couldn't let that traitor stay inside the castle where Harry lived. So he took off, ducking down in to another dark alleyway to watch, wait, and hide.
He'd find the rat eventually.
***
Sirius dug a hole in the ground, desperately trying to bury his nose in something fresh, earthy. Something that reminded him of being sixteen and free and running wild across the grounds, and not of 12 long years in Azkaban with the cold cloying scent of the dementors.
Their scent was all across the school grounds. Suffocating. Crushing. Freezing.
Sirius inhaled through his nose, letting his dog senses focus on the noises happening on the grounds and blocking out the dementors invasive scents.
You're at Hogwarts. You're finding the rat. You're saving Harry.
Almost as if his thoughts had conjured him, Sirius could hear his godsons weird twangy voice carrying across the grounds.
"... doesn't assign much homework."
Sirius scooted along the tree line to the edge of the forest, seeking out his godson...
There! The students must be outside for Care of Magical Creatures Class. Harry was standing next to a blonde with a pointed nose and yes! Arthur Weasley's son, the one with the rat. Sirius took a few deep sniffs as he watched the students carefully and growled lightly once he realized the rat was no where around.
He laid on the ground and covered his nose with one paw, in a desperate attempt to block the scent that threatens his very hold on his sanity. He focused instead on Harry.
The couple of times he's seen Harry now have told him one thing for sure- his godson is a weird kid. Harry seemed like a popular kid, always surrounded by friends, but he also always seems separate as well. Alone. As if he prefers it that way.
Plus he's a Slytherin.
Which had been a nasty shock for Sirius to discover. James and Lily's son, his godson, a Slytherin? He had no idea how the Sorting Hat could have made such a mistake.
For now though, Sirius laid and watched as Harry was volunteered to approach the Hippogriff Hagrid had out for the class. He wagged his tail with laughter when Harry refused to bow and had to back away quickly before the Hippogriff attacked him.
Harry might be in the wrong color robes, but he's just as cocky as James had ever been.
He listened as Harry argued playfully with his blonde pointy friend, "Piss off!" Harry yelled at the other boy with a short laugh.
His godson had a terrible habit for foul language and Sirius loved it.
Sirius jumped to his paws when Harry's blonde friend was scratched by the Hippogriff. Even from as far back as he was Sirius could smell the blood. He whined as he watched Harry shove his way to his friend.
"Quit whining, you're embarrassing yourself," Sirius barely heard Harry whisper. It drew another panted chuckle from him. Harry didn't have much of a bedside manner, did he?
But holy Merlin. He watched Harry heal his friend with a lazy wave of his hand. Who needed bedside manners when you had strength and power like that?
Sirius settled back down as Harry took his frustrations out on Hagrid. It had been a little irresponsible of Hagrid to leave the students on their own with the Hippogriffs, but Harry didn't seem to mind a bit of danger so what was the problem?
Aah, his friend had been hurt. That was clearly the problem. Harry must be as loyal to his friends as James had always been.
He hoped Harry's friends never repaid him as horribly for his loyalty as Wormtail had Prongs.
Sirius scooted forward and listened as Harry started a fight with some Gryffindor prat who said Harry wasn't scary. Sirius let out a loud bark of laughter when the Gryffindor quickly backed away from Harry.
If Harry wasn't scary then why did the Gryffindor boy nearly pee his pants when he took two steps towards him?
Even Sirius could see that there was something... different... about Harry. There was something cold, something that set off Sirius' instincts in his animal form... but Harry was still the same black-haired baby who had chased him down on a broomstick and pulled his hair every time he held him. Harry was still his godson.
He let out a small whine of frustration when the class was dismissed and Harry stomped back towards the castle. As different as Harry might be, Sirius still needed to find the rat, clear his name, and be the godfather he always planned on being.
***
He knew Wormtail was inside somewhere. He finally caught scent of a semi-fresh trail this morning when the Weasley boy had went out for Herbology. It was the same Weasley who was in Harry's year, sporting green robes which must make him a Slytherin as well.
Which meant that the damned rat was sleeping in Harry's dorm.
Not much longer though, Sirius reassured himself. Soon Wormtail would regret every traitorous breath he'd ever taken.
Sirius was pacing back and forth in the tree line of the forest, plotting, planning, scheming, when the rapid footsteps of someone approaching caught his attention.
Harry!
Sirius sniffed around cautiously as Harry came up to him.
"What are you doing?" Harry said, scratching his ears. "You look hungry."
Sirius let out a series of happy barks when Harry called for a cheerful little elf to bring him a steak.
You're the best, he thought happily as he wagged his tail and made short order of the steak.
After he was done he looked around for Harry and was happy to see him sitting against a tree. He plodded over to him and gently laid his head in his lap and whined just a little.
"Most dogs don't like me," Harry said to him. "Hagrid says his dumb dogs a 'good judge of character' and it growls every time it sees me."
If Harry wasn't his godson Sirius would probably react the same way. Harry gave off a feeling of cold danger. But- this was his godson. So Sirius whined and nudged his hand with his nose.
Pet me. Pleaseeee.
Sirius had went 12 years without human contact. Having someone scratch his ears or rub his back was better than Felix Felicis to him.
Harry obligingly scratched his ears and laughed as Sirius thumped his tail on the ground. He was so caught up in the joy of it that he nearly missed what Harry said.
"I hate Lupin. I hate these dementors. I hate Sirius Black."
Sirius looked mournfully up at Harry. Of course he hated him, it was Sirius' fault his parents died. He suggested the change in secret keepers, he'd thought it was brilliant at the time, and instead it killed his brother, Harry's Dad.
Though, he had no idea why Harry would hate Lupin? Sirius had smelled Lupin on the grounds a few times and pieced together that he was teaching here now. Did Harry and Lupin not get along?
"I'm going to kill him," Harry said, apparently swearing vengeance on Sirius himself. "As soon as I find him. I coulda had a totally different life if it weren't for him, ya know? He ruined it."
I did. I ruined your life pup. I'm sorry.
Sirius licked Harry's hand, the only way he could show his remorse given his current state. Thankfully it made Harry laugh a little.
"Gross!" he said, a small smile aimed down at Sirius. The two of them sat there, both enjoying the peace as the sun sank down behind the Black Lake.
The peace that was shattered when Harry jumped to his feet as someone yelled his name. Sirius jumped back behind the trees, unwilling to trust anyone aside from Harry with his presence on the grounds.
Though he almost lost his composure when it was none other than Severus Snape scolding his godson for being out by the tree line.
Harry was nearly to the edge where the dementors wouldn't bother to distinguish him from a criminal, but it wasn't Snape's damn business.
"When's the last time you slept through the night?" Snape asked him.
Sirius didn't understand when Harry said he wasn't sure. Did he not sleep well? He said he hates the dementors, were they causing him to sleep badly?
Sirius watched carefully as Snape gave him a potion, probably dreamless sleep from the sounds of it, and bared his teeth in absolutely confusion as Snape's tone.
Was he... teasing Harry? Harry certainly didn't look scared of Snape, not that he should because Snape is a greasy git and if he put one hand on Harry then Sirius would chew his arm off. But Snape looked almost like he didn't hate Harry.
Which... is not a look Sirius has ever seen on Snivellus' face, aside from back when he was around Lily.
Which was disturbing to even think about.
Shhh, pup, don't tell him about me, Sirius thought as Harry told Snape about a dog he found.
"I'm gonna see if it wants to go home with us this summer."
Us?
"Delightful," Snape said in the same drawling tone he's always used to sound so superior to everyone else. "What I have always wanted was a moody teenaged ward, an elf that utilizes a barter system, a neurotic bird, and a flea bitten dog in our home."
'Go home with US.' 'A teenaged WARD.'
'In OUR home.'
Sirius couldn't hold back a growl as everything started clicking in place.
Why the hell was his godson living with fucking Snivellus?!
***
Sirius had it planned out. He'd watched. Waited. Plotted. Planned. Tonight was the night.
He ignored the dread in his stomach that reminded him how 13 years ago today he'd lost the best friend, and best brother, he could have ever wished for.
He had to focus on Wormtail.
If he could get the rat, then he'd save his godson and maybe have a shot at being a part of the little family he has left.
Harry.
Moony.
Well, that was it really. But it would be two more people than he's had for the last 12 years.
He came out from beneath the Whomping Willow and slunk through the rarely used side entrance of the castle. He crawled down the stairs, headed for the dungeons.
What he hadn't counted on, was not having a real clear memory of where the Slytherin dorms were located in the dungeons.
He focused on scents eventually and tried to let the scent of where the students went to most frequently guide him. He eventually found a portrait, a snake of course, and changed back to his human form for the first time in over four months.
"Aconite," he rasped out. He'd heard one of the Slytherin boys tell it to his girlfriend as they walked back from classes one evening.
Luckily the password hadn't changed recently and the portrait opened up for him. He needed to hurry. He lost time while searching for the entrance and the students could come back from the feast any time now.
He tore up the stairs and grimaced to see he'd went up the female side apparently. Back down he went, then up the stairs for the boys side. He checked each door carefully until he found the one labeled 'Third Years'.
He opened the door slowly and gazed around the room. There wasn't any obvious sign of the rat but surely he was here somewhere. He started digging around in trunks, wardrobes, ripping bedding off the beds in his frustration.
Where is the damn rat?!
"AAAAAAAAHHHH!"
Oh. Fuck.
Sirius looked up from the trunk he had been trying to pry open with his knife straight in to the panicked eyes of the Weasley boy himself.
... no rat though.
Sirius was about to try and make a break for it when...
"YOU!"
Harry came running in and immediately started throwing curses at him.
Jesus Christ. What was this kid learning in school? Sirius had to duck, dodge, and spin faster than he ever had in his training to become a Hit Wizard. Was he out of shape or was Harry like freakishly fast?
Sirius had no wand, no intentions on harming his godson, but no intentions on getting captured tonight either so he took the only route he could; push past Harry and run like Hell.
He shoved Harry out of his way, apologizing in his own head as he did so, then made for the portrait.
"Stop!" Harry yelled, chasing after him. Sirius was just about to step out of the entrance when he felt his knife being summoned right out of his hand.
As Sirius scampered back in to the forest, a dog once again, he tried to find a silver lining in the evening.
He didn't find Wormtail.
He scared the Hell out of a bunch of kids.
Harry stole his damn knife.
And he looked like a real coward running away from a thirteen year old.
He howled miserably as he tallied it all up and realized there was no silver lining. He had just fucked it all up once again.
***
Sirius spent the next couple weeks trying to spend as much time as he could with Harry and figure out the Slytherin boys' schedule. He figured it was two owls one stone: he can find the best time to ambush Wormtail while also getting to know his godson.
He discovered that Harry had a rather large group of friends, but he spent the most time with the red headed girl Susan and a blonde girl that gave Sirius chills when she looked at him- he had a nasty feeling that she saw more than most people. But she never indicated that she thought he was anything more than a lovable stray so he relaxed.
Well, he used to be a lovable stray. Apparently he'd been adopted by Harry. 'Grim' he called him. His godson had his sense of humor that's for sure.
Sirius listened carefully for the first Hogsmeade weekend, thinking he could try his luck then in searching the boys dorms. He was close, so damn close, when he was spotted.
By Snape of all people.
"Shoo mutt, Harry isn't here," he scowled. "He better not be sneaking you in the castle or we will be having words."
Sirius growled at him. He was not going to have words with Harry about a damn thing. He still didn't know how, or why, Harry moved in with Snape but the second he caught the rat, he'd be fixing that.
"Of course the brat would become attached to a dog as obstinate as he is," Snape muttered as he strode up the castle walkway as Sirius retreated quickly back to the Whomping Willow.
If he couldn't get in the castle then he'd just go find Harry in Hogsmeade. He hoped he was up to something fun to brighten Sirius' day.
He wagged his tail and jumped happily when he left the Shack to go find Harry and there he was!
Woof! Woof!
Sirius went running up to Harry while a blonde witch, a different one than the one Harry usually hangs around with, starting laughing at the name Harry gave him.
"You named a huge black dog 'Grim'? You're a bit mad, aren't you Harry?"
Sirius growled just a bit as Harry scratched his ears.
Harry was weird, no denying that. But he wasn't mad.
"Shut your mouth," Harrys friend Susan snapped at the other witch.
Sirius grinned and wagged his tail in agreement. That other witch should shut up.
"My dog, my name," Harry said in a mocking voice that Sirius had only heard a few times from him. "Feel free to fight me over it."
Despite the scars that seemed to crisscross all over Harry's visible skin, Sirius got the impression Halloween night that Harry doesn't lose a lot of fights.
The blonde witch reached towards Sirius and he snapped at her. Harry didn't seem to like her so he figured he wouldn't mind. And he didn't.
"You can bite her if you want," Harry told him. Sirius barked and jumped until Harry laughed.
"Cmon let's keep looking," Harry said to his friend Susan.
What are they looking for?
Sirius trotted alongside Harry as he circled the shack a couple of times.
"Where are we 'not looking for Sirius Black' at next?" the blonde witch asked cheerfully.
Sirius whined and scooted closer to Harry. Why why why was his godson searching for him? Why couldn't Harry just drop it?
"Ignore her boy, she's an imbecile," Harry said in a mocking tone.
"Are you sure you're Harry Potter? Because you sound a lot like Severus Snape," the witch laughed before...
Oh shit.
That wasn't one of Harry's friends. It's Sirius' cousin, Andromeda's daughter, the metamorphmagus Auror that did a few patrols in Azkaban during her training.
Sirius couldn't help but growl and snap at her. He did not need an Auror trailing Harry. If they found out he was an animagus (and why hasn't Moony told anyone yet??) then she'd surely remember the black dog hanging around Harry...
Sirius had gotten so caught up in his own doomed plans that he hadn't noticed Harry and the others wandering off towards the village, bickering as they went. He hesitated, it wouldn't be a good idea to go to the village... but...
But it wasn't supposed to be a good idea to escape from prison and he'd pulled that off just fine.
Sirius ran to catch up to the kids and let out a bark of laughter as he heard Nymphadora tell the students that they aren't very nice.
They really weren't.
And Sirius liked that about them.
Harry gave him explicit instructions to wait outside for him if he wanted a treat once they arrived at the first shop so Sirius found a place to sit and wait. But just as Harry stepped in Sirius jumped up to see inside the window; he wanted to see Harry's face on his first Honeydukes visit. And he hadn't been disappointed.
Harry's face lit up and Sirius had never seen him look so young and happy before now. He wagged his tail eagerly as Harry was pulled in different directions by Susan and the blonde boy he hung out with (Narcissa's son, maybe?).
He returned to his spot by the door and laid his head down on his paws as he watched for Harry to come back out. Eventually he did, his arms filled with bags and his shoulders more relaxed with a brighter smile than he'd had before he went in.
And Merlin, James' arrogance lived on in his son didnt it? Sirius smiled to himself as Harry shrunk his friends' packages with just a bored command.
"Grim! C'mon buddy! Want a treat?"
Sirius went running up to him and jumped on him, eagerly trying to knock him down.
"If you knock me down in front of all these people I'm not giving you a treat," Harry said warningly, his eyes still crinkled with laughter.
Sirius immediately jumped down and wagged his tail.
This is how he wants Harry to always look. Young and happy and carefree. He hasn't seen this nearly enough so far.
Harry gave him some treats and they all went across the road to the Three Broomsticks where Harry ordered him to once again wait outside.
"I'm sorry buddy, I can't bring you in," Harry said with a frown. Sirius licked his hand so he knew he didn't hold it against him.
One day he'd have his name cleared and him and Harry could come get butterbeers together and actually get to know each other.
If he ever found the damn rat.
Sirius planned on sitting outside the pub, enjoying the occasional wafts of hot air accompanied by pleasant smells every time the door opened, up until the Minister showed up.
Sorry Harry... he thought regretfully as he quickly slunk out through the alley and raced back towards Hogwarts. Where the minister was, the dementors were. And Sirius couldn't take any risks.
He decided to wait beneath a little clump of bushes off the main path- maybe he'd either find the Weasley boy with the rat or Harry on their way back to the castle.
He had started to doze lightly when he heard someone stomping angrily through the pathway. He peeked out and saw it was Harry.
Why's he so mad? He'd been so relaxed and happy before he went in the pub? Maybe him and his friends had a spat?
Sirius followed Harry in past the gates and had to bark to catch his attention.
"Damn it. I'm sorry buddy, I forgot to get you food."
Sirius wagged his tail at Harry and tried to lick his hand to tell him he didn't mind. Harry had been feeding him so much Sirius probably already gained back half a stone.
Why are you upset? What's wrong? he wondered as he gazed up at Harry.
"I'm just... mad, I guess. I'm just mad," Harry finally admitted.
Talk to me. Sirius whined and tried to pull Harry over to a tree where he could sit and talk like he did before. He wanted to know why Harry was mad. He wanted to know everything about him.
Harry laughed and teased him for using him as a pillow but he seemed to understand what he wanted as he sat down and allowed Sirius to lay his head in his lap.
C'mon, tell me what's wrong...
Harry scratched his ears and complied with the request Sirius couldn't voice.
"Hagrid's an idiot," Harry murmured. "Telling the whole pub about Black betraying my parents like that. How would he like it if I told stories about him to everyone, huh?"
Merlin. I'm sorry pup. I didn't do it. I didn't do it. I didn't do it! Sirius whined.
"You know Black was my godfather, yeah? And he just let Hagrid take off with me. Which is only a little better than killing me there, I guess."
I would have never killed you! he growled. I should have taken you. I should have told Dumbledore to go fuck himself and you and I could have just turned Wormtail in... Merlin. It would have been so different.
"Which d'you think is worse Grim- dying or living with people who hated you for seven years?"
WHAT?! Sirius growled at the very thought. Hagrid told him that night that Harry was going to his aunt and uncle, Lily's kin. Did they hate Harry? Why was he only there seven years? What all did Sirius miss locked up in that hellhole?!
"Did your owners kick you out too? Is that why you're my dog now?"
I'll always be here for you pup. I'm sorry, Sirius thought as he laid his head back in Harry's lap.
"D'you wanna help me find Black? I figure if I wait long enough he'll find me and try to kill me."
I'M NOT GOING TO KILL YOU. MERLIN.
"Black couldn't actually kill me, could he buddy? Doesn't even have his fuckin' knife."
Sirius let out a few barking laughs at that. He wasn't happy about losing the only weapon he had since he had no wand, but Harry bragging about taking his knife off him to him was just too funny to ignore.
He wondered if he could tell Harry about this one day and they could laugh together.
"Everyone says he's mad, he's a Dark Wizard, he's evil. But Cissa says he was 'tragically misunderstood'. Snape says I'm misunderstood too. D'you suppose that's just a nice way of saying crazy?"
... Cissa defended me?
He had no idea what to make of the Snape comment, but he was pleased to hear Cissa describe him to his godson as anything other than a raving lunatic.
Sirius focused back on the one sided conversation just as Harry whispered, "I can tell you a secret though, can't I buddy?"
Sirius thumped his tail on the ground.
Of course you can pup. You can tell me anything. I'd die before I betrayed you. I swear.
"Susan told me she loves me, she's my best friend, but I don't even know what that means," Harry said in a hushed whisper. "Mione and Theo are in love, I guess, and I don't get it either. D'you... d'you think I'm broken, or something? How d'you know if you love someone? I'd kill someone who tried to hurt my friends, but if they tried to hurt me I'd probably kill them too. So do I love them? That doesn't sound like love does it?"
Well, it didn't really. Sirius was sure Harry wasn't broken, but he was a really odd kid. He whined as he had no idea what to make of Harry's confession.
"Think I can tell Snape I told you a secret and he'd let it count?"
Sirius stuck his tongue out in an effort to show how little he cared about the opinion of Severus Snape... who Harry actually talked about quite a bit.
"I better go buddy," Harry said as he stood up "Don't want Snape to come yelling again, do we?"
Sirius bared his teeth in a light growl. If Snape came yelling at his godson in front of him then he'd be biting a hole in the man's leg.
Harry laughed as he walked up to the castle. At least he seemed more relaxed now.
Sirius might be only a dog-godfather right now, but he'd helped a little bit which is more than he's been able to do in the last 12 years.
***
Sirius tried twice during the next week to sneak in to the castle again and was foiled each time. He decided to put a pause on his plans of getting inside the castle, and try instead to catch Wormtail if he was with Weasley outside the castle instead.
Harry came to see him multiple times during the week, sometimes bringing a friend or two, and always bringing food each time.
"I won't let you be hungry buddy," he promised each time. Sirius wagged his tail and happily ate while he listened to Harry talk with his friends. One afternoon Harry was talking with Cissa's son, for the blonde was Cissa's son Draco, about their upcoming quidditch match the next day.
Sirius perked up at that. He knew Harry played seeker for Slytherin and he was so torn. On the one hand (er, paw) this was his chance to search the dorm again knowing everyone will be out on the field. But on the other paw... he really wants to see Harry fly.
He might have convinced himself to use the chance to search for the rat uninterrupted if it weren't for Harry scratching his ears before he left and murmuring, "You'll be there, right buddy?"
He couldn't let him down. If Harry wanted his dog there then Sirius would be there, tail wagging. Even if it stung quite a bit to be rooting for Slytherin.
Kid couldn't have been a Hufflepuff if not Gryffindor?
Well, probably not. Even Sirius had to admit that Harry didn't seem to have a gentle bone in his body.
Slytherin was probably better than Hufflepuff though. Sirius and James had been rather sneaky when they were students, pulling loads of pranks. Maybe Harry just inherited the same sneakiness and it landed him smack dab in the snake pit. Harry was the only family Sirius had left, if he was happy in green robes then he'd do his best to get over it.
Starting with cheering (barking) along for Slytherin tomorrow.
***
Dogs couldn't actually cry, but if they could Sirius suspects his fur would be soaked by more than just the rain. Harry was a brilliant flyer. He was already better in a thunderstorm in his third year than Sirius or James had been in perfect weather as seventh years.
Harry was quick and cunning and light and made moves on the broomstick that looked like they should be impossible.
Can you see him James? Can you? He's amazing.
Sirius thought his heart might break as he imagined the life Harry should have had. Him and James would have came to all his games, even if they did have to wear green robes. And they'd sit by Minerva and tease her how she lost out on the greatest seeker in a century and they'd embarrass the hell out of Harry in front of his friends and it would have been brilliant.
But James was dead. And Harry was an orphan. And Sirius was just a dog on a mission to find a rat.
Nothing was the way it should be.
Sirius' thoughts swirling rapidly in to a morbid place was the only warning he had before he felt the icy despair clinging over his fur.
Dementors.
He looked across the field and shit. There were at least a hundred!
Someone get the dementors off the pitch! They're going to kill some-
Sirius started howling as he saw his godson faint and begin plunging towards the ground. His thin frame spiraling towards a sure death- either by the dementors or the impact itself.
HELP HIM! HELP HIM! he howled. He focused on Harry and tried to shut the dementors aura out of his mind. You're at Hogwarts. You're fine. It's Harry that needs help.
Finally Sirius could see someone sprinting on the pitch, their wand drawn, and panicking nearly as much as Sirius himself was. Someone with black hair and-
Snape?
Snape shot a spell at Harry's body and slowed his descent. Harry still crashed on the ground and Sirius watched, shocked, as Dumbledore conjured a stretcher and Snape sprinted as quickly as he could with Harry on the stretcher towards the castle.
Did Snape... like Harry?
Snape had hated James Potter. But... but he used to be quite close with Lily, something that never failed to rile James up with jealousy. Maybe... maybe Snape liked Harry because of Lily?
Sirius leapt down from the stands and went in search of Harry's friends, hoping to overhear anything about his condition.
"He's going to be furious," Harry's Ravenclaw friend with the brown hair said.
"Better to lose a broomstick than his life," her Slytherin boyfriend responded. Sirius watched as the witch pocketed a baggie full of broken broom pieces and Sirius felt his stomach clench as he realized what it was.
Harry's broomstick. His Nimbus 2001. Harry had loved that broom. Sirius saw him polishing it outside the locker room sometimes after practice. He always took his time to do it manually and make sure it was perfect.
And now it was destroyed.
But, well, this was finally Sirius' chance to do something nice for Harry!!
... even if he couldn't know it was from him.
The kid was The Boy-Who-Lived, he probably got anonymous gifts all the time. Surely nobody would question one generous anonymous gift to him.
Sirius hurried off to Hogsmeade to sneak an owl order form before returning to the Hogwarts forest and waiting for any sign of Harry's fate from the fall.
***
How do I fix this? How do I fix you? Sirius whined for the fiftieth time in the last couple of weeks.
Ever since Harry's quidditch match Sirius had to silently watch as he got more and more withdrawn, thin, and the bags beneath his eyes grew. He looked terrible. And he sounded miserable.
Harry came outside almost once an evening now. Just to talk. He told Sirius all about living with the Dursley's (and they had quite a reckoning coming if Sirius couldn't clear his name he may as well kill some abusive Muggles). He talked about living on the streets (Lily was surely crying to hear this. Her beloved son, sleeping in alleys? For the first time in the last 13 years, Sirius was glad James and Lily's weren't here to hear this. He could barely stand it himself). He talked about his nightmares, and living in cupboards, and feeling like he was never going to be good enough, and how Snape was the first person who had ever been kind to him.
Which was just... wow. How messed up does life have to be that Severus Snape was the first adult to be kind to this kid?
He told Sirius about his boggart, and he was afraid it would all come true one day. He told him about how Moony was 'a stupid fuckin prat' and told Snape about his Boggart the moment Harry left the staff room. Sirius growled in frustration at that. Remus could be so good for Harry but he made a poor choice there, and Harry didn't seem like the 'forgive and forget' type.
Harry talked about being worried that Snape wouldn't like him anymore one day and he'd get rid of him (Sirius had growled at the very idea!) and that his friends would all abandon him and he'd be alone.
Sirius understood that being alone was a fate worse than death to Harry.
He knew how that felt.
Harry talked about how his magic was the only thing that made him feel special. The only thing that made matter he thought.
You would matter even if you were a Squib, Sirius desperately tried to convey with as many face licks as possible.
Harry told him about how he'd recently started punching the walls. How seeing his skin broken, bleeding, and damaged made him feel better. Sirius knew how he felt but didn't want his godson doing the same destructive things he did on occasion. He wanted Harry to be better, do better, live better.
One horrible night Harry even talked about how he'd been so miserable, so sad, so angry, last year when he was expelled (and didn't Dumbledore have some explaining to do for that one?!) that he had cut his wrists right open hoping to die rather than live on the streets alone.
Sirius had howled as if it were his own wrists being cut open. Why was life so hard on his pup?
Then Harry spoke about Snape. How Snape saved him from the streets. How he signed on as his guardian. How he lied for him. Taught Harry how to survive in the castle. Gave him a house so he'd never be homeless again. And how Severus Snape had somehow managed to become Harry's closest, most trusted, and most reliable person in his life.
Which was absolute udder madness.
But... but Harry was an odd kid with a crummy life and had desperately needed someone. And Snape had stepped up while there hadn't been anyone else to do so. And now Harry was attached.
It was insane. But it made sense.
Sirius hoped that once he cleared his name that he could take that spot in Harry's life.
Except... except Harry was going to lose his mind when he realizes that Sirius was Grim the whole time. But what was Sirius supposed to do? Run away every time Harry tried to talk to him?
It was a miserable time for them both. Harry was being affected by the dementors worse than Sirius himself was. He could see it in his face every time he came outside. He had the same haunted look of despair that many of the long term inmates eventually adopted.
Sirius was getting desperate and starting to think about trying to reach out to Albus or Remus- someone to catch the rat. He doubted he could be tracked by an owl post, it could be a safe call.
But if they tipped off Wormtail without actually catching the rat, then Wormtail would escape and who knew where Sirius would find him at again?
He just needed to wait. He needed Harry to hang on just a little bit longer. He was nearly at the end of his rope on patience for Harry's sake when Harry finally tipped the scales on Christmas afternoon.
Harry came flying out towards the tree line, under James' cloak but leaving footprints in the snow as he ran. He pulled it off in front of a tree and started- WHAM. CRUNCH. SLAM. CRUNCH.
Stop! Harry! Stop!
Sirius started barking and howling and desperately trying to pull Harry away from the tree.
Quit it pup! You're hurting yourself!
"QUIT IT!" Harry screamed. He turned around and pushed Sirius back as hard as he could with his one remaining good hand.
Pup? Sirius jumped back from the fire in Harry's eyes and the cold anger he was letting off around him. This was the Harry that made Sirius' canine instincts shy away. This hard, cold, icy side that Sirius hadn't seen before, but knew it was there.
Sirius had a hard time controlling his animal instincts as Harry hit the ground on his knees, arms wide open, and begged him to forgive him.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. C'mere, please?"
Sirius crept towards Harry slowly, relieved to feel that the cold feeling he was putting off earlier was gone now.
"I'm so sorry," Harry cried as he stroked Sirius' back. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry,"
Sirius started licking Harry's face trying to tell him it's okay.
It's fine pup. It's okay. You didn't do anything. I'm sorry too.
And then Harry just broke. He clung to Sirius' neck and sobbed, and sobbed, and sobbed.
And Sirius felt his heart break. If he wasn't 99% sure Harry would stab him immediately, he would transform back to his human self on the spot just to comfort his godson.
"I don't want to do it anymore Grim," Harry wailed. "I don't want to be here anymore."
No pup, no. C'mon. C'mon. Think of flying! Think of your friends! Fuck, think of Snape if you have to! Don't think that way!
Harry kept talking out loud, discussing what all he would need to do before he died, as Sirius panicked.
This wasn't Harry. It was the dementors. Harry might be sad but they were pushing him off the deep end of madness.
Sirius howled and barked and wished so badly that someone would come find his pup right now. Someone needed to protect him.
"I'll miss you Grim," Harry said with a tight hug to Sirius' neck. As soon as Harry put James' old cloak on, Sirius took off towards Hogsmeade as quickly as his four paws would take him.
Not following Harry inside the castle was the hardest thing he'd ever done. But it would do his godson no good if Sirius was kissed before he had an opportunity to find someone to help Harry.
And really, as much as he might not like it, after listening to Harry over the past few months, after seeing what he saw at the Quidditch match- there was only one person Harry had in his life that he trusted completely.
There was only one person Sirius could turn to for help right now.
***
Sirius had ran as quick as he could to the Shrieking Shack and had pulled out a scrap of parchment from the pile he'd been stockpiling just in case before transforming back temporarily. He scrawled a quick note- being sure to get as many key points in as he could- before transforming back and sending it off with the first available owl he found.
Now he had to wait.
Which was the hardest thing he'd ever done before in his life.
Hold on pup. Just hold on. Hold on.
***
Sirius sat in the forbidden forest all night and all morning. Just watching the castle.
He didn't know what he was watching for. But at a minimum he hoped he'd see Harry today, see that he was alive and okay.
The sun was nearly all the way in the sky when the first change happened- the dementors left.
They all left.
They gathered by the gates then left the grounds.
Sirius felt the first bit of warmth in his fur since he'd first reached the mainland, before the dementors had been spread everywhere he went.
Snape actually did it. He got rid of the dementors.
Did he catch the rat??
Sirius paced the forest floor impatiently as he waited for some sort of sign of anything happening up in the castle.
He was so focused on the faraway castle that the presence of a silver fox right in front of him made him stumble backwards over his paws.
"I received your note. Your presence is required in the Defense Office. The dementors have cleared the school," Snape's drawling voice came from the fox.
That... that was the most unhelpful and vaguest message Sirius could imagine receiving in this moment.
He assumed Snape got his message. Owls rarely, if ever, lost posts.
And he saw the dementors leave the grounds.
But why was he needed in the defense office? Did Snape get the rat? Was Sirius going to be arrested? Was this a trap?
He whined as he paced some more and tried to come to a decision.
Snape was a greasy git. Sirius heard students complain about him and knew that he hadn't really changed much since school, even if he was fond of Lily's son. But why would the dementors leave unless they caught the rat? Did Snape give him Veritaserum? Did Wormtail confess?
The defense office would be Moony's. Which made it seem like Snape did go to him for proof. Did Moony understand? Would Moony help him or hurt him if he showed up?
And Snape didn't say a damn thing about Harry.
It was that thought that finally made him charge inside the castle. He wouldn't find out how Harry was from the forest.
He ran inside and sniffed his way to Moony's office. He took a few deep breaths before scratching on the door.
Don't let Harry's trust be in the wrong person, he desperately hoped as Dumbledore himself opened the door.
Sirius slunk in the room slowly, eyeing the occupants.
Dumbledore. Amelia Bones. Minister Fudge. Snape. Lucius Malfoy. And... Moony.
Sirius let out a soft whine at Moony's face. He looked shocked, but his eyes were lit up with a desperate kind of hope. Sirius thought that was probably a good sign.
"It will be easier to clear your name if you were in your human form," Dumbledore told him.
I don't trust you, Sirius whined even as he transformed back to himself. He backed away from the six Wixen all staring at him with big shocked eyes.
"Did you catch the rat?" he asked hoarsely. Cursing his voice for sounding so weak in a moment like this.
"We did," Dumbledore said. "Well, Severus did."
Sirius looked at Snape, "Harry- he's... he's okay?"
"Potter is fine," Snape sneered.
What the hell?
Did Snape even care about Harry? Did he even check on him like Sirius told him to? Harry was not fine last night. He'd been planning out a suicide note with instructions for Merlin's sake! How could Snape say he was fine?
Sirius was gearing up to argue with the man when Amelia cut in, "Will you consent to an interview under the use of Veritaserum? We have interviewed Pettigrew and will require your cooperation as well."
"I- I can tell you what really happened?" Sirius said hopefully. "No more Azkaban?"
"We will discuss it post-interview," Amelia said. "Do you consent or not?"
Sirius looked towards Moony. His friend, his lover, the man he had trusted more than anyone.
Except for the one thing that had counted.
Moony was staring at him with his eyes reflecting Sirius' own hope back at him. He nodded slightly.
Do it, his amber eyes said.
"Yeah, I consent," Sirius said. "How soon can we do it?"
"Immediately," Fudge said, his voice suspiciously upbeat for the Sirius toon. "Why don't we pop over to the Ministry and get this taken care of right now?"
"Wonderful plan," Dumbledore said. "Sirius why don't I accompany you?"
Sirius was beginning to panic, thinking this might be a trap when Malfoy caught his attention.
"I believe you will require legal representation," he said smoothly. "As the barrister on retainer for the House of Black, I will accompany you and represent your legal interests."
"Who made you retainer for the House of Black?" Sirius said with a sneer. "I think I'd rather take my chances without one than you."
The Malfoy's were no better of a family than the Black's had been. And Lucius had been one of the first Death Eaters as far as Sirius was aware. That's what his mad cousin Bellatrix screamed about all the time anyway.
Malfoy just raised his brows and smirked the slightest amount.
"Very well, I will inform Heir Potter-Black that you refused my services. Enjoy interrogation without a lawyer Black."
Damn it. Sirius did want a lawyer, desperately badly. Someone who could make sure his words weren't twisted under Veritaserum. And he'd have no time to find one if Fudge wanted him interviewed now. He glanced at Moony again, the one who always kept a calm head on his shoulders, and saw him nod.
"Fine," he huffed. "You can come with Malfoy."
"Don't do me any favors," Malfoy said.
Sirius rolled his eyes. Either Harry had hired him as a barrister for the House of Black or he hadn't. It wasn't Sirius doing him any favors regardless.
"Let's get this over with," the Minister said. "Sooner we get to the Ministry the sooner this whole mess can be solved!"
Finally. Finally a chance to sort it all out.
Sirius could feel tears of relief welling up as Moony stepped up behind him in line for the floo and slowly put his hand on Sirius' shoulder.
"I'm sorry," he murmured. "I should never have doubted you."
"I should have trusted you more," Sirius said, his heart aching with how much could have been prevented had they just trusted each other a little more back then.
"Let's go get this cleared up," Moony said with a watery smile that Sirius returned right before stepping in to the floo.
The next two hours were a whirlwind for Sirius. He'd been taken to interrogation where Moony waited outside and Malfoy followed him in.
Amelia gave him four drops of Veritaserum and the next hour was a haze of questions and toneless answers.
When he felt himself coming to from the questioning it was to the beaming smile of Amelia.
"Sirius Black- on behalf of the Ministry of Magic I would like to be the first to apologize to you and wish you luck on your life going forward."
Sirius couldn't catch his breath.
"Do- does- am- that's it?" he gasped, looking from Malfoy's bored expression to Amelia's happy one. "I'm free?"
"You're free," Amelia confirmed. "You'll need to report to records to file for an expungement and report to holding to retrieve your wand- but then you're free to go."
Sirius walked out of interrogation in a complete daze. 12 years. 12 years he'd hoped for this day. He'd thought of ripping Wormtail apart himself and then living his life. He never truly thought he'd get to see it happen.
Even if Wormtail was already being processed, it was still a dream come true.
He'd do it right this time. Forgo vengeance in an effort to live his life the way he should have 12 years ago.
He'd barely processed anything when Moony's repeated question finally clicked in.
"Where do you want to go?" he asked, his face lit up with happiness.
"Hogwarts," Sirius said immediately. "I want to see Harry. I have to explain."
Moony nodded with understanding and they floo'd together back to his office. As they made their way to the dungeons Moony talked about the little bits of Harry he'd gotten to know.
"I think the dementors have been rough on him," he said quietly. "He's been roaming around at night, not sleeping. And one night I caught him punching the wall until he broke his knuckles."
Sirius frowned as he nodded. Snape clearly wasn't doing very good in his capacity of guardian if he was just letting Harry get worse and worse. What was his plan if Sirius hadn't found a way to get rid of the dementors? Did he even care about Harry's obvious unhappiness?
Moony threw Snape's office door open, agreeing that Snape would be the easiest person to approach to find Harry, and told him that Sirius had been cleared.
"Delightful," Snape said with a glare at Sirius. "Leave."
"I want to see Harry," Sirius said quickly. "Where is he?"
Why wasn't Harry with Snape? Did he really leave him alone when Sirius said he was going to hurt himself? If something happened to Harry because Snape was too stupid to watch him then Sirius would have no problem earning a place in Azkaban this time.
"He's asleep," Snape spat towards Sirius. "Though I doubt if he were awake that he would wish to see you."
"Why wouldn't he want to see Sirius? He can explain to him what really happened that night," Moony said with a puzzled frown.
"I don't even know why you're here," Snape switched his glare to Moony. "Potter certainly won't wish to see you."
That was probably true enough. Harry had complained quite a bit about Moony. Sirius hoped they could work it out eventually, but it wasn't important right now.
"I want to talk with Harry," he said again. "I need to explain."
"Have you not allowed Potter to talk to you plenty?" Snape snarled. "Do you intend to inform him why his pet is no longer sniffing around the forest?"
"It isn't your damn business Snape," Sirius felt his patience snapping. "Go get my damn godson. I need to talk to him."
"Your godson? Surely you mean my ward," Snape said softly, fury filling Sirius at the reminder that Snape was Harry's guardian instead of himself
It should have been me.
"Did you forget? Hmm? That while you were playing fetch as a pet, that I am actually Potter's guardian?"
"Fuck you," Sirius snarled, his patience officially gone. He needed to see that Harry was okay and Snape was playing fucking word games. "Harry thinks you're a good person, loyal and honest, but we know the truth don't we Snivellus?"
He was happy to see Snape was now just as angry as Sirius himself was. He stepped closer and jabbed his wand in Sirius' chest.
"You dare? When I saved your skin from the dementors?" he hissed. "I should have burnt your little note and turned you in myself."
"And leave the dementors to kill Harry? You'd do that?" Sirius said. "You don't care about him at all, do you?"
"Do not talk to me ab-"
The office door opened and there he was. Sirius' godson. Alive.
Harry stood in the open doorway, his mouth hanging open as he took in the scene in front of him. Snape with Sirius at wand point while Lupin stood to the side. Harry barely looked at him before looking directly to Severus and raising both of his brows incredulously.
"What's going on?"
Shit.