Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and events from J.K. Rowling's wonderful Harry Potter books. I am writing this for my own enjoyment and hopefully for the enjoyment of readers. Anything you recognize belongs to JKR. The rest belongs to me.
Chapter 64: Family Allies
"You sure you'll be alright?" asked James. He was standing near the barrier to the entrance to Platforms 9 and 10 and was rather reluctant to leave Sirius behind. He remembered the state of his best mate at the end of the previous summer, thin and haunted.
"For the one thousandth time, Prongs, I'll be fine. I can take care of myself," said Sirius. He was touched by James' concern, but even though James was his best mate, he didn't want him to know the full extent of what happened to him at Grimmauld Place. He was embarrassed enough to be related to them, but to acknowledge their unforgivable deeds to anyone, including James, would only draw pity, something Sirius loathed. Besides, Sirius felt that if James knew then he would do something stupid which could put him in unnecessary danger, or possibly make things worse for Sirius since he was still a minor and had to live there no matter what he wanted.
James seemed taken aback by Sirius' gruff remark. "Uh…ok, sorry I asked."
Sirius immediately felt guilty. He knew James meant well, and he didn't want to turn away the one person who above all felt like family, like a brother. Sheepishly, he said, "Sorry. Didn't mean to bite your head off just then. I'm just looking forward to the end of summer." Looking toward the barrier, he said, "You'd better go. Tell your mum I said 'hello'."
"You're not coming out?" asked James. He knew his mother would be disappointed that Sirius hadn't come out to greet her.
"Nah…I forgot something on the train. I'll just talk to her before we leave in a few months," replied Sirius.
James knew Sirius was lying but decided not to push the issue. He clapped Sirius on the shoulder and said, "Okay. Take care, Padfoot. Don't forget about the mirror."
Sirius grinned and said, "How could I forget? We got a lot of use out of those in detention this year."
James grinned back before disappearing through the barrier.
Sirius sighed and sat down on his trunk. He did not want to walk through the barrier. He wanted to fast forward to September, or better yet, fast forward two years where he would be old enough to leave his family without their being able to stop him. He wasn't sure how long he sat there procrastinating. He simply sat there thinking about anything from ways to antagonize Regulus to ways of sneaking an owl out to one of his friends or even Alice.
"So," came a voice from a few feet in front of Sirius, "you are here."
Sirius looked up, surprised to see Andromeda. "What are you doing here?"
"I came with Aunt Elphaba," she replied. "She was rather irritated about waiting, so she sent me along to find you while she took Regulus home."
"What about your sisters?" asked Sirius with a sneer.
Andromeda smirked and said, "Mum met up with them and they're on their way home. You and your family are supposed to come for dinner tonight."
Sirius groaned and sarcastically said, "Wonderful! Who do I have the displeasure of seeing tonight?"
"Other than me?" quipped Andromeda. "In addition to your family and mine, there will be Araminta, Aunt Elladora, and Uncle Alphard."
"Uncle Alphard, eh?" asked Sirius. After Andromeda nodded he added, "Well at least there'll be some entertainment. Does he still think my name is Cereal?"
"Yes," she replied with a thoughtful smile. "Although, sometimes when I look at his eyes, I wonder if he's as crazy as everyone thinks, or if he's just having fun with us."
"Maybe…" said Sirius.
There were a few moments of awkward silence as they wondered what to say to each other. After all, the two cousins had never gotten along in the past and now they were trying to have a civilized conversation.
Andromeda finally took a deep breath and said, "Sirius, I realize this is strange…us talking like this. I…just wanted to thank you for your letters this year. They have helped me do a lot of soul searching."
"So you're still seeing this Tonks fellow?" asked Sirius.
"I am," she replied with a slight blush. "I…well…I'm in love with him, Sirius. The more time I spend with him, the more I realize that I've found my soul-mate."
Sirius let out a low whistle. "I assume the family still has no clue about him?"
"No, but I think they're beginning to suspect that I'm hiding something," she replied. "I've missed several family functions to meet with Ted. They want to know where I was but telling them I work late will only work for so long before they know I'm lying."
"What does Tonks think of all this?" asked Sirius.
Andromeda shifted uncomfortably and shrugged her shoulders. "I haven't exactly told him yet."
"You haven't told him about what - being a witch or how crazy our family is?" asked Sirius.
"Neither," replied Andromeda.
"Andromeda, how serious is this relationship? You already told me you love him, but how does he feel about you?" asked Sirius.
"He's told me he loves me. He's even broached the subject of marriage," she said.
"He proposed?" asked Sirius.
"No, not exactly," she said. "He just brought it up in conversation as something he was thinking about for us."
"Then you need to tell him as soon as possible," said Sirius. "It's better he finds out from you before one of our family members finds out and goes after him."
Andromeda looked down and gave a weak nod. "I know, I know. I don't know what I'm scared of more - his walking out on me or his staying and being in danger." She looked back up at Sirius and said, "Actually, I have another motive for coming here to meet you."
Sirius raised his eyebrows and asked, "What?"
"I wanted to make a deal with you," she said. "I know what happened last summer. Regulus told Bellatrix who told me. I think we both know there's a strong chance it could happen again this summer. You've been supportive of me and Ted and I want to return the favor, but I think it can be beneficial for the both of us."
"What do you have in mind?" asked Sirius, his curiosity piqued.
"As far as the family knows, we still don't get along," said Andromeda.
"You mean we get along now?" joked Sirius.
Andromeda tried to give him an annoyed look, but was given away by the twitching corners of her mouth. "As I was saying, we still appear to detest each other. I, of course, being one to 'value' the family ideals while you are the black sheep. Now, suppose I decide to take a special interest in helping my 'horrible' cousin to see the error of his ways. Suppose I do this by getting you out of the house during the weekends so I can work with you, make you my 'special project' for the family's sake?"
"How would that benefit you?" asked Sirius.
"You would give me an alibi. You would have a free weekend while I could spend time with Ted and the family wouldn't suspect anything," said Andromeda.
Suddenly Sirius felt a bubble of excitement forming in the pit of his stomach. They would have to do a bit of performing for the family but if it was possible…then he could actually enjoy part of his summer. Maybe he could even sneak over to see James and Marianne. He looked up at his cousin and with a tight smile he said, "I'll make you a deal. We'll do this as long as you agree to tell Tonks the truth."
Andromeda smiled back and said, "Okay, it's a deal then. You have to realize, though, that once we are around the rest of the family we have to act like we don't like each other." She reached out her hand and Sirius shook it, sealing the deal.
Sirius walked out of King's Cross with a unfamiliar feeling. He finally had an ally in the family, and it felt pretty good.
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"Where were you?!" was the greeting of Elphaba Black as Sirius stepped into Number 12, Grimmauld Place.
Sirius clenched his teeth and said, "Hello, Mother. Nice to see you, too."
Andromeda walked in behind him and said, "I found him talking to some of his Gryffindor friends."
Sirius could see a vein standing out on his mother's forehead as she glared at him. Elphaba turned to Andromeda and said, "Thank you, dear, for finding him. I'm sorry that you had to bring him home."
Andromeda gave Sirius a quick glance before replying, "I can certainly handle a few Gryffindors, including my cousin."
"Of course you could, knowing all the dark magic you do," muttered Sirius mockingly.
Elphaba turned on her son and spat, "How dare you disrespect her? Did you not learn your lesson last summer?"
"What lesson is that, mother? How to turn my back on my friends or how to look down upon perfectly good people?" retorted Sirius.
"Why you ungrateful, disobedient, disgrace of a-" started Elphaba.
"Perhaps, Auntie, if I may make a suggestion," interrupted Andromeda.
Elphaba took a few breaths to control herself before turning back to her niece. "Of course, dear."
Andromeda continued, "It's obvious that your eldest son has not learned anything from last year's punishments. Perhaps we could try something different this summer."
"Such as?" prodded Elphaba.
"Let me have a try, Auntie. Maybe someone closer to his age will be more effective," said Andromeda. When she looked at Sirius he winked at her, knowing his mum's back was turned.
"I couldn't ask you to do that. Your job at the Ministry keeps you busy enough as it is," said Elphaba.
"I can make time during my weekends. It's only for the summer, after all," said Andromeda. "Besides, if there's a chance we could knock some sense into him and save the family from embarrassment, it's worth a try." She looked at Sirius again and with a cool glare asked, "What do you say, cousin? Fancy spending some time with me this summer?"
"I'd rather eat a hippogriff's arse," replied Sirius, glaring back at Andromeda.
Elphaba turned on her son and said, "Watch your tongue, you ungrateful fool! You WILL go to Andromeda's flat every weekend and I expect you to be on your best behavior." She turned back to her niece and said, "You have my admiration for taking on such a task. If he should become a problem, though, I give you my permission to punish him however you see fit."
Andromeda smiled and said, "Excellent. It's agreed, then." She looked over at Sirius and said, "I will be here Saturday morning to get you. Don't dawdle, or perhaps I will take Aunt Elphaba's advise about your punishment." When Elphaba turned her eyes away from her niece, Andromeda winked back at Sirius. "I will see you both tonight at Mum and Dad's, then?"
"Of course," replied Elphaba.
Seeing Andromeda's dramatic skills in front of his mum, Sirius realized how she was truly a Slytherin. Although Sirius no longer saw her as evil, he saw how cunning she could be, and for once he could admire her Slytherin qualities.
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"So Cereal, how is the Ministry these days?" asked Alphard.
Sirius tried not to snicker at his 'crazy' uncle. He had been in the sitting room with the family since dinner had finished, and Sirius had been counting the minutes until he could escape their madness. His Uncle Alphard had hobbled over to the chair next to him and sat down, studying his great-nephew with his probing dark brown eyes.
Sirius looked at his great-uncle and was suddenly reminded of Andromeda's comment from earlier. She had said that she thought Uncle Alphard could be faking his senility. Sirius looked into his uncle's eyes and saw the faint glimmer of a twinkle, and thought that perhaps his cousin had a point. Sirius smiled back and said, "The Ministry is the same as always, Uncle."
"Hmmm," said the old man, "I could have sworn I heard that blood-sucking vampires were making life very difficult for your position."
Sirius was about to do the old standby with Uncle Alphard - smile and nod at whatever he says, but then when he looked at Alphard's face again he thought he could see an intensity in his gaze. Sirius then rethought what Alphard just said and realized that he could be speaking metaphorically about Sirius' life at home. Gazing back at his uncle, he said, "As I said, the Ministry is the same. The vampires haven't changed. They still like to give me trouble."
Alphard's eyes bulged a little as he spat out, "I thought as such! Those bloody vampires never change! You, young Cereal, need to find a way to escape their clutches."
Sirius, following his great-uncle's metaphor, added, "I can't exactly escape them until I get promoted out of the department I'm in." Sirius was referring to his age and not being able to leave his family.
"Ahhh, yes, yes! Well, you keep working hard, Cereal, and eventually you will get promoted and become financially independent of those blood-sucking creatures, you hear?" said Alphard.
"Yes, sir," replied Sirius.
Alphard then started hounding Regulus about his time at Azkaban, to which Regulus' eyes widened and he walked away. Alphard followed after him, asking about the dementors, and Sirius chuckled. He had been dreading the beginning of summer for a long time, but it hadn't been as bad as he thought it would be. He had gained two allies in his family, and the chance to escape every weekend.
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A/N: So Sirius' summer is looking better so far than his last one at home. I just didn't have the heart to make him miserable two summers in a row.
Thanks to my latest reviewers: Anu, Mani12191, urSweetiemSmia, Alicia, PottersPrincess, mrs. pendragon (x4), J&M Ink., sista7, hpfreak, Jo Bob, AshleyM, A New Reader, and Anonymous.
Next chapter: Sirius meets Ted Tonks. Andromeda tells Ted the truth.