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(Word Count: 3,548)
“Home sweet home,” Harry said as they all popped into the living room of the beach house. Sirius slowly took it all in, eyes filled with memories. “Though, you may recognize it already.”
“Yes… Is this where you've been growing up?” Sirius asked curiously.
Remus cleared his throat, subtly shaking his head.
“It's alright, Remus. I’m okay to talk about it. Dumbledore placed me with Lily’s sister, Petunia. I can't really blame him, since they were the closest relatives I have. Unfortunately, they were abusive. It was only recently that I was able to come to the magical world, where I learned of this place. I've been here ever since,” Harry said.
Sirius's eyes bugged out at the thought of him being abused, “What! I'll kill them!” Sirius roared in anger.
Remus immediately grabbed him by the shoulders. “Sirius, calm down!”
“Calm down? Calm down! How can you tell me to calm down!” There was a crazed look in his eyes.
“Because, Harry needs you!” Remus shouted.
Sirius blinked, coming out of the crazed episode. He glanced at Harry then looked away ashamed. “I'm sorry, Harry, Remus. You're right. Last time I ran off for vengeance, I left you behind. I can't do that again now.”
Remus hugged him. “Good. Now this doesn't mean that we won't get Harry the justice he's due. The Dursley’s will face trial for their crimes. We’ll make sure of it. Let them rot in prison.”
Harry nodded. The Dursleys were terrible people, Dudley was a snotty kid, but ultimately he’s a product of Petunia and Vernon’s bigotry and over-spoiling. Away from their influence, he might just turn out alright. “How should we go about this?”
Both Remus and Sirius shared a look. “You don’t need to worry about it, Harry. Leave this to us.”
Tripsy came into the room, noticing their arrival. “OH! Good friend of master, Siri! Tripsy should have known Siri could never have betrayed master James!” Tripsy greeted Sirius with her tears of joy and guilt. The old house elf remained practically glued to Sirius's legs until it was time for dinner.
The next morning, Remus took Sirius to St. Mungos to get him back to full health.
Unfortunately for Sirius, there were no specific potions that could easily fix malnutrition. What the wonderful healers at St. Mungos did have were potions that helped with healthy skin; for all of the sores that came from an unwashed body wasting away on a brick floor, potions that helped with jittery nerves, and loads of chocolate. For malnutrition, they simply prescribed a lot of food.
As for the mental health part, the wizarding world didn't really have therapists, but they did have “mind healers”. That was more for spell damage to the mind though. Still, it was better than nothing. He will have to visit them at least once a week to make sure he is okay.
That night, Harry dug into his parent’s trunk and took out the Marauder’s Guide to Pranks, the overflowing notebook. He had yet to look through it properly because he wanted to wait until Sirius was free.
He took the book back downstairs.
As he approached the living room, he heard Sirius talking. “So, you’ve been living in the muggle world?”
“Yeah, I worked as a repairman, fixing up broken toys and furniture. Being a wizard made it really easy, but there weren’t many customers, unfortunately,” Remus said.
When Harry entered holding the guide, both Remus and Sirius stared in awe. “No way… I thought it had burned up or something,” Sirius said way too reverently.
“I had found it together with mum's old school books. I wanted to wait until you were free before going through it though, together with you and Remus,” Harry said.
Sirius laughed, and Remus shook his head wryly. “Oh you sweet summer child, Harry. You don't know what you've just started.”
“Nevermind that, Harry! Bring it here, and I'll show you some of my favorite pranks!” Sirius said giddily. Harry smiled, it was good to see him so excited.
Sirius seemed to come alive these next few days, even while he was skin and bones. Together they poured over the old notebook and even brewed some of the fake candies and learned some of the prank jinxes. Towards the back of the notebook was a section on Animagus transformations. Harry smiled.
This did come with a slight downside though. Sirius once woke Harry and Remus by setting off firecrackers and whizzing rockets in their rooms. Somehow he managed to set it all up to go off at the same time in the two different rooms. They then got him back by dumping ice cold water over his head the next morning for his own wake up call.
If he was feeling well enough to be setting off fireworks indoors, he was feeling well enough to get a surprise ice bath.
Normally, Harry would never be so… open with someone like this, but there was something about Sirius that was comforting and disarming, and the miniature prank war they had between the three of them made all of the walls Harry had inadvertently built up around himself come crumbling down. Remus probably felt the same way about Sirius as Harry did, because he smiled so much more these days.
On one of these days, Dumbledore came over to get the guardianship rights signed over to Sirius. The three of them were waiting in the living room, Sirius was seething quietly about Harry's years at the Dursley’s.
The fireplace flared to life in green fire and Dumbledore came walking out. He smiled warmly at Harry and was about to speak but paused seeing Sirius's anger.
“Good morning, Sirius. What's wrong?” Dumbledore asked.
“What’s wrong?” Sirius scoffed, disbelievingly, “How could you send Harry to that horrible family! Lily’s sister always hated magic!”
Dumbledore sagged a bit, his face becoming sad and guilty. “Yes, I don't think I could ever forgive myself. But what was I to do? The only options at the time were with them or the Blacks! I couldn't legally place him anywhere else! With Lily’s sacrifice, I was able to establish some very powerful wards around the Dursley home to keep him safe. I even had Ms. Figgs nearby to watch for dark wizards appearing in the neighborhood. I never imagined that it would be his own family that harmed him.”
After that initial scuffle, the two went through signing all the paperwork. Apparently Dumbledore already visited the Dursley’s and got their signatures needed from them.
By the time Dumbledore left, Harry was now officially not living with the Dursleys.
Two weeks passed, and Sirius was feeling well enough. He was no longer just skin and bones, but had really filled out. That's when Kreacher popped in.
Kreacher was a much older elf, hunch and bitter. Though he didn't look nearly as old as he appeared in the movies, he still wore a permanent grimace on his face.
“Master Black commands the filthy blood traitor and his mudblood Godson” Kreacher glanced towards Harry, “to come to Grimmauld place.”
Apparently, Arcturus had gotten impatient waiting on Sirius's schedule.
“Why you…” Sirius started angrily, looking like he was about to attack the elf, before Remus placed a hand on his shoulder.
“Stay calm, Sirius,” Remus said.
“We should head over to see what he wants at the very least.” Harry said. He was rather curious to meet the man. Sirius said he was the worst, but when they met briefly after the trial, he didn't seem too bad, though a bit grouchy. Besides, it was thanks to him that Sirius was never officially kicked out of the family.
Sirius grumbled, but relented. “Alright, fine. But if he starts talking about marrying some pureblood death eater princess, he can go f-…” Sirius glanced towards Harry, before finishing lamely, “... back to his own manor.”
“The werewolf mutt is not invited by the master,” Kreacher said.
“Watch it, Kreacher! Don't you call him that!” Sirius demanded.
Kreacher backed away from Sirius, but offered no apologies. “Kreacher is only relaying the words of his master. Only the blood traitor Sirius and mudblood Harry was invited. No one else.”
“It's alright, Sirius,” Remus said, “you take Harry and see what the old man wants. I've got some other business to go about.”
Sirius and Harry took hands with Kreacher and they were popped away. In an instant, Harry felt the familiar squeezing sensation like they were being sucked through a straw. The process is generally a lot smoother with an elf, but maybe Kreacher intentionally added turbulence, because this one was nauseating.
They landed in the entrance of the Black household. Harry could recognize the entrance from the movies. The hallway, the stairs up, and the ugly troll foot umbrella stand. The only difference was that there was no portrait of Walburga and there wasn't a speck of dust. The place was spotlessly clean and it was actually welcoming. Well, in the same way as an old Grandma’s house with too many antiques.
Harry felt a little disappointed that he didn't get to see the building appear from between the neighboring houses.
Kreacher turned to them. “Master Black is in his studies. Kreacher goes to the kitchen to prepare tea.” With that, he turned and walked briskly down the hallway.
Harry had noticed the difference in Kreacher before, but Kreacher looked a lot younger than his movie counterpart. And he wasn’t so bitter and filthy either. Perhaps because the house is repaired? Or was it that Arcturus Black is back in Grimmauld?
Pushing his speculations aside, Harry and Sirius went upstairs to find the office.
The office or study room was right across from the library. When they entered, they were greeted by the sight of Arcturus Black sitting at the large mahogany desk. He was writing something down when we came in, but then he set his quill down in its stand and clasped his hands.
“Ah, Sirius. Harry. Good of you to come. Have a seat.” Arcturus said, his voice laced with a hint of annoyance.
“Not like we had a choice,” Sirius grumbled.
“Of course you didn't!” Arcturus said gruffly, “If I just left you to your own business, then you would have just ended up as another one of Dumbledore's dogs.”
“As opposed to becoming a death eater?” Sirius scowled.
Arcturus scowled. “I was never a death eater, nor did I want anyone in my family to be so subservient to that ponce that called himself lord. Orion and Cygnus, those fools, ignored my wishes in favor of their crazed wives.” Arcturus leaned back in his chair and sighed wearily.
Sirius gaped at the man. “But you're Lord Black! You could have just ordered them to not get themselves involved with you-know-who!”
Arcturus scowled. “And what would that have accomplished? It's the way of us Blacks to be stubborn! For all their idiocy, they had at least inherited that.”
“So you should have kicked them out of the family!” Sirius roared.
Arcturus stood up, angrily slamming his desk. “You fool of a boy! This wasn't the first time us Blacks have fought on opposing sides of a war! But more important than any sides of a war or political inclinations, family sticks together! Family above all!”
Arcturus deflated a bit, and sat back down. Ruefully shaking his head. “You remind me a lot of myself, Sirius.”
Sirius made a disgusted face, but Arcturus ignored it and continued. “Back during the first wizarding war, all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins supported Grindelwald's cause while I fought against them. Similar to your own situation. The only solace I had was my dear cousin Dorea. She was your great grandmother, Harry. She was the only other Black that stood by my side. I consider her a sister to me.
“When this Voldemort rose up, and I saw my family falling over themselves to serve him, I… regret to say that I had given up. I knew from experience that it was pointless to try and stop things. So, I retreated back to my private chateau and let things occur as they would. Though I had hope in you, that even when this dark lord fell, the Blacks would still continue on.
“At least, until the news came of your betrayal of the Potters. I thought that the Blacks were doomed. I resigned myself to live out the rest of my days in my chateau. But that changed when I heard you had never received a trial and here you are now, name cleared and innocent.”
“If you think I'll be the next Lord Black, you've got another thing coming,” Sirius said.
“You'd rather the fortune of the Blacks fall into the hands of the Malfoys?” Arcturus asked knowingly, “If you don't take up your rightful position, then that is what will happen. Those ‘death eaters’ as you call them will gain quite a bit of financial power. However, should you become my heir, you can lead your family however you please.”
Sirius sat there quietly, thinking it over.
Harry couldn't help but wonder why he was here. “Mister Arcturus, what exactly does it mean to become ‘Lord Black’?”
Arcturus eyed him a bit, before huffing. “Magically speaking, there's no real secret or hidden power when becoming a ‘Lord’ of a family. The Lord has control of all the family's wards, across all properties, that are tied to the Lord’s ring. In addition, the old families tend to have a restricted study with books only for the Lord of the family to read. There are rumors the other old families like to spread about the lord's of families being so-called ‘Lords of Magic,’ but it's all rubbish.”
“Politically speaking, there are noble houses, such as the House of Black and the House of Potter, that are a part of the aristocracy. We have hereditary seats of the Wizengamot. Each House gets one vote.”
“What about Draco Malfoy? If he became the next Lord Black, would he be both Lord Black and Lord Malfoy?” Harry asked.
“Yes, he can then choose to absorb one into the other, transfering all the wards tied to one ring to the other. Legally speaking, Draco Malfoy could maintain the families separate until he can pass the rings to two different children. However, if he transfers the Black wards to the Malfoy's rings, then that would signify the end of the Black family and he would then only be Lord Malfoy. Legally speaking, the properties would then officially be Malfoys,” Arcturus explained.
“What about the votes in the Wizengamot?” Harry asked.
“Should he keep the two houses separate, then they would have the votes of house Black as well. However, A member of the Wizengamot can only represent one house at a time. So he would need to find a representative to vote for House Black, but he would be controlling their votes, yes. Should he choose to absorb House Black, House Malfoy gets an additional vote.”
Sirius growled at the thought. Harry had another question though, “How do I go about becoming Lord Potter? I was told I need to go through the ministry.”
Arcturus laughed, “See here, Sirius? The boy's willing to step up!” Then he turned back to Harry. “This is the reason I asked for you to come as well. First, to thank you for clearing my grandson's name, when everyone else, including myself, had failed him. The house of Black owes you a great debt. Second, was because I knew you would need some help in attaining your status as heir Potter.”
“Heir? Not Lord?” Harry asked.
“You're far too young to be named Lord, you'll have to wait until you take your OWLs for that. However, you can obtain heirship status. This will allow you to have some legal protections and certain allowances when dealing with Aurors. Then, when you take your OWLs, you can become Lord Potter and take your seat at the Wizengamot,” Arcturus said.
Sirius spoke up. “I suppose… if Harry's eventually going to join those leeches, then he would need some good allies to be there to help him.” Sirius sighed. “Alright, fine. I'll be the next Lord Black. But I won't be following your footsteps, I have my own beliefs and views. I don't give a rat's arse if someone's muggleborn or not.”
Arcturus sighed in both relief and exasperation. “That's fine enough, I suppose. You may direct House Black as you see fit once you are Lord Black. In the meantime, I have another matter to address. Your own heir. You're not getting any younger, Sirius, and you need to find a wife. I have here a list of potential candidates. I believe you even had some of your dalliances with a few of them during your time in Hogwarts. So you should be amenable to some.”
Arcturus pushed over a stack of papers closer to Sirius.
“No way in bloody hell am I getting married any time soon!” Sirius exclaimed.
Arcturus scowled. “You had an easy enough time getting your jollies off with them before! Look through these women and I want at least 5 that you deem acceptable.”
Sirius growled, “I refuse! Besides, I already have an heir!” He turned to Harry.
“What! Me?” Harry asked, shocked. “But I'm going to be Lord Potter!”
“Of course, you! You see anyone else? You're my godson!” Sirius said with a nod. “You'll be my heir and you can just pass on the title of Lord Black to one of your own children.”
Arcturus stepped in. “That will be the same problem as Draco inheriting both titles as well. There's no guarantee that Harry here will have two children, and there's no guarantee that he'll keep the two families separate. Here's a solution: We will sign a contract. Harry here will be adopted into the Black family as your adopted son, Sirius. He can keep the names Potter and Black. But he will be required to sire two children, one Potter and one Black. The Black child needs to be pure blooded, of course.”
Arcturus pushed another long piece of paper toward them, the contract for Harry becoming the heir to House Black. Harry was impressed, Arcturus had been expecting this and was prepared.
“That's just bollocks, Harry should be allowed to marry whoever he wants to!” Sirius said.
“I don't care who he marries for House Potter, but if he wants to be Lord Black, he'll need to be married to a pure blooded witch,” Arcturus said, “Hell, marry two girls, if that's what you want, I don't care. But whoever becomes Lady Black needs to be pure-blooded.”
“And what if I marry a muggle born?” Sirius questioned hottly. “Will you kick me out as you did Andromeda?”
Arcturus sighed. “No. At this point in time, I don't really have any options left.”
“Speaking of Andromeda,” Harry said, “Did you know that her daughter is a metamorphmagus?”
Arcturus's eyes widened. “What? A metamorphmagus? But that's… impossible. The trait had died out in our family.”
“It's true. I met them at Sirius's trial,” he said. “The Tonks were the ones representing him during his trial, and I sat together with Andromeda and her daughter, Nymphadora Tonks.”
Arcturus looked conflicted. “That's incredible, but…”
“Andy's the only family that I don't hate, so I'll be reinviting them into the family once I'm Lord Black,” Sirius said. “They deserve some backing after everything they were put through.”
“But she ran off!” Arcturus said indignantly.
“After she was about to be married off to a death eater! She would have been abused her entire life, made to join you-know-who's forces as well!” Sirius bit back. “You weren't there! You only knew what Orion and Cygnus told you, that she ran off with a muggle born! You never even questioned why!” Sirius was shouting now. “Andy was never like Narcissa and Bellatrix, they're the ones that bought into the pure-blood ideology. You say family above all, but you cast her out the moment she chose a different side!”
“Well, I…” Arcturus sighed. “You're right. I had been led to believe that it was Andromeda that had abandoned the family, but it was us that abandoned her. You can extend an invitation to come back, but at this point, I doubt she will accept.”
“Couldn't Nymphadora be the heir? She does have the metamorph trait,” Harry asked.
“No, even if she's a metamorphmagus, she's still a half-blood,” Arcturus stated.
Sirius scoffed in disbelief. “I can't believe it. You might as well give up that ideology, because once I'm Lord Black, the House of Black is going to be firmly on the Light side of politics.”
Harry frowned as well. “I'm a half-blood as well. My mother was a muggleborn, so why are you fine with me becoming the heir and not someone more closely related? She even has a lost Black trait. Shouldn't she be a better choice?”
“It's different with you, you're the so-called boy-who-lived, the paragon of Light and the hero of the wizarding world. The moment you reappeared in the wizarding world, you exonerated your godfather's name. Your fame doesn't even fall short of Dumbledore's right now. To be frank, I want to use your fame to cleanse the Black family of the image my children had created during the war. That's why I can allow you to become the heir even if you're a half-blood. Although… I suppose I can allow you to take her as your Lady Black. She does have the lost Black trait after all. Though I highly doubt bringing up marriage contracts with Andromeda will help anything. Best to forget about it.”
Well then… he didn't know how to feel about that.
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