They all watched as Bill headed up the stairs, matching concerned expressions and relief that for all Bill was recovering slowly, he was recovering which was the important thing.
Molly bustled around the table, clearing plates and eschewing help. Sirius felt warm and comfortable and loathe to move despite the feeling he should.
"You know we really should continue our weekly dinners." Arthur commented mildly, and Sirius wondered what the older wizard had seen on his face to make the offer. "We did say at the start of the Summer that we'd work on an alliance of friendship ourselves beyond that which binds our children."
"We should." Sirius replied, touched despite the lurking want to refuse on the grounds that he didn't need any kind of pity.
Arthur suddenly smiled with all of the mischief that typified his twins. "Can you imagine the look on Wenlock's face if we announced an alliance of friendship between the House of Black and the House of Weasley?"
The two of them burst out laughing.
"Really." Molly tsked at them. "I don't know what you were thinking, Arthur, almost calling someone out."
Arthur hummed.
"Although the invitation for a weekly dinner stands, Sirius," Molly said, sitting back down with a cup of tea, "we'd be pleased to have you." And she did look genuinely pleased.
"Thank you," Sirius said, marvelling at the change from the start of the Summer.
"I'm afraid it's purely selfish," Molly said suddenly with a rather sheepish smile, "you'll be seeing the children every week and well…"
It actually made Sirius feel better knowing that she wasn't being completely selfless. He said so.
Molly nodded in understanding. "We do understand, you know." Her smile went motherly. "It's hard seeing them away to school." She sighed quietly, wrapping her hands around her mug. "I almost kept Ginny home her first year to avoid having an empty home." She grimaced. "After…I really wished I had."
Arthur's hand slid across the table and Molly took it, their fingers intertwining in silent support that made Sirius think about James and Lily and go slightly wistful for the lack of his own love life.
"How's the mind healing going?" asked Sirius instead.
It was Arthur who answered with a disappointed shake to his head. "We took her to the first one and she was very…" he sighed, "Healer Allen said she needed to want to come if progress was going to be made."
Sirius made a sympathetic noise. He remembered having a similar conversation with Healer Fay over Harry's treatment, specifically the discussion where she'd told him Harry would need to want to recognise the Dursleys' treatment of him as unacceptable before he could begin to heal. Frustration hadn't even begun to cover how he felt.
"So no more mind healing until she asks?" summarised Sirius.
Molly nodded. "Maybe it'll be fine. She seems to have made some new friends this year even if they are a little boy obsessed for my liking."
And he so wasn't going to be the one to tell Molly Harry's theory that Lydia and Jessica had befriended Ginny to get to the Boy Who Lived.
Sirius made a non-committal noise and smoothed a hand down the front of his robes. "Well, I should make a move. Thank you so much for your hospitality, Arthur and Molly."
"Same day next week?" asked Arthur pointedly.
Sirius nodded and got to his feet. The goodbyes were a whirl and Sirius ended up back in The School House with a portion of pudding in a Tupperware box before he knew it.
Dobby sniffed at him, plucked the box out of his hands before he could explain and gave him a stomach soother. He was ushered into his night time routine as though he was a recalcitrant child and Dobby a harried nanny.
He called Harry in self-defence. Their chat soothed him more than the potion and he fell asleep with Harry's discussion about his first fifth year Runes class drifting through his head.
The next morning, after a breakfast that would go easy on his stomach – a surprisingly light oatmeal with wonderfully syrupy strawberries – and a worrying message from Amelia about needing to talk with him about a missing pregnant woman (because it might mean Voldemort was definitely set on the ritual), Sirius set off to the tribunals.
Courtroom Ten was quite imposing but then it was meant to be; it was a courtroom. There was a chair for the accused; stands for the prosecution and the defence, and tiers of seating that would normally be filled by the Wizengamot.
Sirius was the first one there; he looked around the empty room and shrugged. He slid into the Black seat and opened the Daily Prophet. The headline story was the new Department of Muggle Affairs. There was a good picture of Cornelius and Arthur standing side by side on the podium shaking hands and looking suitably serious. His eyebrows rose as he read the article. Rita's words ended up mostly positive towards having the new Department and the direction of Ministerial policy but rather lukewarm about the appointment of Arthur; Wenlock's challenge had been included as a side story.
Another problem to solve, mused Sirius. The publicity over the Summer had been very positive for himself and Harry but he was all too aware that journalists – and Rita in particular – would be circling for blood in the water. It wasn't quite so much fun putting someone on a pedestal if they didn't fall from it, or someone didn't pull them down.
He watched as the prosecution arrived; Amelia with an old female Auror with steel blue hair who looked like a contemporary of Moody's. Rufus hovered in the background. Cornelius wandered in and started talking with Amelia; probably a last minute plea to be the one to prosecute but Amelia was shaking her head and looking determined.
The defence advocates started to arrive. Rowle's was first; Hermon Gelding, a solicitor with dark slicked back hair and a bulbous nose that looked purple from Sirius's vantage point. Jugson's and MacNair's came together; Giles Dotts and Clemence Collingworth of Dotts and Collingworth. They were a small firm but represented many of the pureblood Minor Houses. Both were brown haired and indistinguishable. Travers's advocate arrived last; Barry Bootle. He was polished in his appearance; perfect blond hair, classically handsome features, good physique adorned in quality robes. He'd been one of Regulus's friends.
Sirius's hand clenched on the newspaper and he carefully smoothed it flat again. Regulus had come to his senses and done the right thing in the end even if there had been a moment where he had tried to kill Sirius with Barry Bootle standing right beside him, both of them trying to earn their Death Eater stripes. One day, Sirius would take Kreacher and go back to where Regulus had found the locket and find his body. He would bury his brother.
He shivered, suddenly cold.
And the world started to blur at the edges as his mind slipped into a memory…
James, dead on the floor…
Lily, dead in front of the crib…
Harry crying and bloody…
Hagrid holding Harry and telling Sirius he had his orders…
Peter defiant and yelling something…
The blast and shock shuddering through him…
"I said get those Dementors out of here now!" Amelia's voice cut through the fog and Sirius came back to himself abruptly.
He was curled up, hands over his head; rocking. He stopped and took a deep breath. He shivered violently.
"Sirius!" Amelia was suddenly beside him. She held something out and he took it automatically, recognising the scent of chocolate.
He stuffed it into his mouth.
"They're gone." Amelia said as though Sirius regaining his senses hadn't already told him that.
"I'm so sorry!" Cornelius was wringing his hands together. "I arranged…I thought it was best to have extra security and I didn't think…"
"That's right," Amelia snarled at him before she caught herself, "but we will talk about this later, Minister." Her eyes went pointedly to the gawping defence advocates.
Cornelius nodded unhappily. "Sirius…"
"I'm fine, Cornelius." Sirius said briskly. "I just wasn't prepared for them." He attempted a smile. "A cup of hot chocolate wouldn't go amiss though."
Cornelius's assistant took off immediately to go get it.
"My sincere apologies, Sirius." Cornelius said again.
Amelia handed Sirius another chunk of chocolate and he put it in his mouth, letting the sweetness melt on his tongue. He swallowed and motioned back at her table.
.
.
.
🎉Subscribe and get access to all PDFs🎉
🎉ko-fi.com/gokublack444🎉