Chapter Text
"Remus is really teaching Defence next year?" Sirius asked. He and Harry had just been dropped off by the Grangers after returning from King's Cross.
"Yes" Harry watched as his godfather frowned "I thought you would be happy. At least he will be better than Lockheart or Quirrell"
"I don't doubt it"
"And he is a good man?" When Sirius didn't respond at once, Harry tugged on his top "Uncle Mike?"
"Back when your parents went in to hiding, James and I thought he might be the spy"
"But Pettigrew..."
"I know" Sirius shook his head "Yes - Remus is a good man, and I will feel a lot better about your safety if he is in the school next year"
"Then what's wrong?" Harry asked. Sirius paused for a moment, then transformed in to a big, black dog. Harry watched as the dog prowled up to him, sniffed, then backed away and returned to human form.
"You hugged both girls, Susan and Claire, but not Arnold. And you washed your hair with... orange shampoo this morning" Sirius smiled at the look of surprise on his godson's face "Now imagine what someone who can do that without needing to transform, and to whom such a thing is second nature, would be able to detect" Harry stared at him for a moment, then his eyes went wide.
"Lupin?"
"Yes"
"But... he will know your scent"
"Yes"
"So I have to drop out of school?" Harry exclaimed.
"NO!" Sirius laughed at the horrified expression "But it means that either I need to change my scent, or mask it some how"
"OH" Harry said "Is that bad?"
"Well - no. It's pretty easy" Sirius paused "Except.."
"Except what?"
"It needs to be cast on anyone I have had a lot of contact with" He looked over at the mantelpiece above the fire. Harry followed his gaze to a picture of Hermione, Harry and Sally.
"Oh"
"It is up to you Harry - we can either do this with their consent, or without. But we do have to do it"
"But..." Harry started, then looked up "You think we should tell them?"
"As I said - it is up to you" Sirius sat down, and smiled at him "Do you trust them?"
"Yes" The speed of Harry's response didn't surprise him "But Susan might not know occlumency, and Min's parents can't learn it"
"We can take care of that" Sirius smiled again "There are pendants that will protect their minds from attack, and I can teach Susan if it is necessary" Harry nodded in agreement.
"Are you sure you want to do this? And that it is my choice?"
"Yes, and yes" Sirius looked thoughtful "I know I have more to lose, but... well you remember what I said before, about James and Remus"
"Yeah?"
"If you do this without telling them, it will damage your friendship. And even if you tell them, but not the reason behind it, the outcome will be the same" He paused "And Hermione will work it out anyway"
"That's true" Harry stood up, and started pacing back and forth "Okay. If we can find the pendants, and ensure Susan can protect her thoughts, then we should tell them everything" He turned back "But only under those conditions"
"Harry..."
"I mean it. Minnie and Sally mean a lot to me, but I can't lose you - even if it means never seeing them again"
"You could tell them, but not tell their parents"
"No" He said softly "I can't ask them to lie for me - not even for this" Harry looked solemn "Either we make sure your secret can be kept, or I leave Hogwarts and we find another school"
"Okay" Sirius nodded, already thinking about alternatives "But it won't come to that"
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"Mum! I am just going out to Harry's"
"Okay dear. Don't forget your wand"
Hermione smiled - two years ago, before her Hogwarts' letter came, her mother would have told her to take a coat or a hat.
"I guess it serves the same purpose" She smiled to herself, then she picked up the paper she had been reading, and headed out.
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Five minutes later she rang the doorbell at The White House (as they had taken to calling it), and was surprised when it spoke to her.
"Sorry, but we aren't here at the moment. We should be back around four o'clock. You can leave a message, Miranda, but since we already know it's you, don't feel like you have to"
She stared at the doorbell for a moment, then burst out laughing.
When she had calmed down, she looked at her watch and, seeing it was five to four, she sat down to wait.
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"Min?" Harry stopped short as he saw his friend sat down on his front door step "How long have you been waiting?"
"Ten minutes longer than your doorbell said I would be" She smiled "Nice spell, by the way"
"Thanks" Sirius said "And sorry - we got delayed. Would you like to come in for a drink?"
"I can't, I'm sorry" She held up the paper "I only came to see if you knew about this" Both Harry and Sirius looked at the front page of The Daily Prophet.
"Wow" Harry said "That's... interesting"
"Indeed" Sirius added "Do you mind if we keep this?" Hermione shook her head.
"I just thought you should know" She started to walk away, then turned when Harry took her arm.
"Could you and your parents come over at 8ish tonight? There is something we need to talk to you about"
"Okay - I will ask them" She looked at them for a moment "Is it serious?" When they both started laughing she stared at them as if they were crazy.
"Sorry" Sirius said when he had got himself under control "Yes - it is ser... it is pretty important. Sally and Susan will be here too"
"Okay - I will see what I can do" She smiled again, then set off back home, wondering what had been so amusing about the question she had asked. The two males watched her go, then Sirius turned to her godson.
"We really have to get over that joke"
"I know" Harry smirked "But imagine what will happen when they find out your middle name" He burst out laughing again, causing Sirius to glare at him "Sorry. I promise I will never tell them, L..." Sirius couldn't help smiling as Harry collapsed in to giggles again.
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"Susan - do you know occlumency?" Sirius asked.
"I learned when I was younger" She replied "And after hearing about Dumbledore and Harry, I have started practising again"
"Do you mind?" He asked, holding up his wand.
"Go ahead, but gently"
"Legilimens" For a moment he thought the spell hadn't worked, then he saw a glimmer of light in the distance. He moved toward it, and soon found himself stood in a crypt, bathed in torchlight. He looked around, then saw Susan coming towards him "This is good" He said with a smile "I guess I would go through the doors, or the tombs?"
"If you can get by me" She waved her hand, and a sword appeared "This is the part I need practice in"
"Okay" Sirius blinked, and the two of them were back in the front room "You pass" He turned to Hermione's parents "Now - I can't teach you two the skill, but Harry and I have a present for you" Harry handed each of them a box, which they opened to find a small crescent shaped charm on the end of a chain.
"Occlumency amulets?" Hermione asked "Why?"
"Harry and I have something to tell you, but it has to stay a secret. It is something you can not tell anyone, otherwise..."
"You won't see either of us again" Harry said quietly.
"Harry!" Sally turned to him.
"I don't want to go, but there wouldn't be any other choice" He moved so he was sat next to her, and kissed her gently "You know how much you mean to me love, but this is out of my control"
Claire looked at her husband, then they both nodded and turned back.
"We will go along with you, as long as it is not criminal"
"It isn't" Sirius paused, then stood up "How much do you know about the night Voldemort was vanquished?"
"Harry's parents were under the Fidelius charm, they were betrayed by Sirius Black and Voldemort came" Susan said.
"Then Sirius took Harry and vanished, until you rescued him" Sally continued.
"Well - that is not entirely true" Harry said "But before we continue..." He held up his wand "I solemnly swear that everything I am about to say is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth" His wand flashed, then a moment later, Sirius followed suit. Then he put his wand down, and took a deep breath.
"James had three friends - Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. Now, for reasons I will come to, Remus could not e the secret keeper" He saw Hermione's parents frown in confusion "The Fidelius Charm hides someone in plain sight, just as long as one person can keep the secret. It is the ultimate in home security, providing the person - the secret keeper - stays loyal"
"Which is how Black betrayed them?" Claire asked.
"Kind of" Harry smiled "Remus wasn't suitable, which left Peter and Sirius. Sirius was my godfather, and my father's best friend. There wasn't anything he wouldn't do for my parents, even if it meant his death"
"Then how did he end up betraying them?" Sally asked.
"He thought he was too obvious a choice" Sirius stood up and started pacing "Everyone knew James would chose him, so he suggested that he act as a decoy" He stopped pacing and faced them "Sirius could go around the country, staying one step ahead of those chasing him, while the real Secret Keeper could go in to hiding to protect James, Harry and Lils"
"Pettigrew?" Susan asked in a faint voice.
"The rat-bastard was a spy, and he went running to Voldemort" Harry said in an angry voice "Then he vanished, leaving Sirius the blame" He looked over at his friends "Any questions so far?" Before his friend could reply, Claire looked curiously at Sirius.
"Mr... Black?" Everyone turned and stared at him in stunned silence.
"Well - at least I know where your daughter gets it from" He smiled "What gave it away?"
"We are told this is top secret, to the point where you will both flee the country if it is revealed, and you tell us that Sirius Black isn't the cold blooded traitor we were lead to believe he as. I could only guess what Fudge or Dumbledore would do if they found out Harry's guardian was an infamous criminal"
"But you believe us about the innocent part?" Harry asked.
"Cast a spell" Susan and Hermione said together. Everyone watched as Harry levitated the sofa, and Sirius levitated Harry.
"What does that mean?" Arnold asked.
"If they were lying, their magical cores would have collapsed, and they couldn't do what they just did" Sally said with a smile "And sorry about yelling at you - I understand"
"My Aunt Petunia - the woman who would get me - hates magic" Harry said with a sigh "Imagine Draco adopting Hermione, but worse" Both girls shivered at the thought "So if its a choice between losing Sirius or fleeing the country..."
"I know" Sally kissed his cheek, then turned to Sirius "Don't think me rude, but why tell us now?"
"Because of Professor Lupin" Hermione said, then looked over at Sirius "You will need to cast a masking spell of some type?" Susan and her parents turned and stared at her, then turned back and stared at Sirius questioningly.
"He told you?" Sirius looked down at his godson "You told them?"
"Yes" Harry nodded "Sally is the second smartest witch in our year, and Minnie is the second smartest in the school. Do you really think that after watching Remus for a year they wouldn't figure it out themselves?" He looked up at the other adults "Professor Remus Lupin was a very good friend of my parents, and is a werewolf"
"Pardon me?" Claire said in surprise.
"He was bitten when he was a child" Sirius said "But he is only dangerous one night a month, and since the advent of Wolfsbane Potion, he isn't a danger at all"
"And this relates to you..." Arnold trailed off "He can SMELL you?"
"A werewolf is basically a dog, just with incredibly heightened senses" Hermione replied "Even in human form, a person infected by lycanthropy has an unusually good sense of smell"
"So he will be able to smell you on Harry?" Arnold frowned "And the girls?"
"Pretty much" Sirius smiled "And with the news that someone is running around pretending to be me, well - if Remus tells Dumbledore - and he will - then it will be all the excuse he needs to take Harry away from me" He looked around "I know we have sprung a lot on you at once, and that doesn't include the spell I will need to cast on each one of you, but... well we both need to know now if you will keep our secret" There was a few minutes of silence, then Claire stood up.
"I admit learning you are a wanted fugitive is surprising, and that a creature that I have always thought of as a dangerous killer is going to be teaching at my daughter's school, but I am willing to trust you"
"Thank you" Sirius smiled.
"That goes for me too" Susan added "Plus I know Sally has never been happier" She smiled at her daughter, who blushed.
"Thanks mom!" Everyone laughed.
"Okay" Sirius continued with a smile "Here's what we have to do..."