Openish to Harry and co. / Weasley kids.

[siriuslyadog]

It was late evening, probably six or so, and Sirius was officially off-duty. Well, as off-duty as he could be, all things considered. Three days had passed since he'd been stationed in Hogsmeade. Getting out of the house came along with some serious stipulations and one guilt-inducing row with Dumbledore, but it was decidedly worth it. If he'd

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[harryjpotter]

It was possibly the first piece of good news he'd had in ages and ages. It was definitely from Sirius. He recognised his handwriting. Harry was so excited, it was with some considerable effort that he didn't grin like an idiot. Anyone who saw his face would instantly know that something was up. He read the note again. After sundown. He could manage that. For safety, he set the note in the fireplace, then incendio'd it.

He had a dilemma then. Tell Ron and Hermione? Don't tell Ron and Hermione? Hermione would tell him not to go, certainly. Ron would possibly agree with Hermione, but maybe not. Still, Ron would tell Hermione at the very least. That was a given. If he was going under the cloak, it would be far easier to go alone.

Practicality decided it for him, then. Luckily it was still early enough in the term that sunset happened just after dinner, so he'd hardly even be missed. For the rest of the afternoon, he acted as if nothing was at all different. He complained about Seamus giving him dirty looks. He complained about the Slytherins being nasty gits. He complained about the new DADA teacher being completely rubbish. All the while, he was concealing the frisson of excitement at seeing his godfather again. By the time dinner ended, he nearly bolted out the door.

He had everything he needed already, and made his way to one of the least used corridors on the ground floor. He slipped into the loo, concealed himself under the cape, tapped the map to check on who else was nearby, then headed out. Piece of cake. He wondered, as he finally neared the Whomping Willow, if it would be fooled by the invisibility cape, and in fact it was. He was able to walk right up to the knot that opened the secret passage. It was all almost too easy.

He kept the cape on until he was safely inside the Shrieking Shack, and then he pulled it off, balled it up, and used one of Hermione's handy minimising spells on it, to shove it back in his pocket. Not once did he even consider that the note could be a forgery or a trap.

"Sirius?" he said, taking a few steps further in.

[siriuslyadog]

Sirius spent the rest of his evening pacing the minimal floorspace in one of the upper bedrooms. He'd idly been straightening up, repairing splintered furniture - some from the remnants of Remus's monthly problem, some from that disaster a couple of years ago (he fancied he could still see Snape's face print in the wall paneling, and opted to leave it there). His mind, however couldn't keep focus long enough to really do anything productive. He wasn't a fantastic housekeeper on the best of days, and his rambling brain nearly had him convincing himself Harry wasn't going to show up.

Keen ears picked up footsteps before they actually lead into the house, and he transformed quietly, creeping along in the shadows to make sure it was indeed Harry, and not an exceedingly clever student (or Snape, no matter how much he wanted to add to his face-print collection).

The voice was good enough identity confirmation for him, and he happily trotted into the room. He gave a short bark and tugged Harry by the sleeve, leading the way up the flight of stairs and into the (slightly) more sanitary room, before changing back with a 'pop' and rounding to hug his godson.

"Sorry about that. It's a bit difficult to ward the entire building, so we've limited it to this room. Better safe than sorry." He pulled back, beaming. "You should be more careful, though, Harry. Anybody could've written that note. If it'd been a Death Eater... well, he'd probably be bound and gagged in the floor by now, but the point stands. Check, then double check."

[harryjpotter]

Harry was grinning like a cheshire cat as he gave Sirius a tight hug back. "Right. Of course. I... wait, why are you here instead of in London? Isn't it safer there?" he asked. The room looked significantly less shoddy than the last time he'd seen it.

Harry was ridiculously happy to see him, though. He was grateful that Sirius was here instead of London. Especially after his experiences over the summer, Harry felt he needed more guidance, someone he could talk to that actually wasn't a fellow student. Yes, he could sort of talk to Dumbledore, but Dumbledore was unavailable so often. He understood that the headmaster was busy with all sorts of things that Harry was not privy to, but Sirius... well, Sirius would always make time for him if he could. Even if Harry hadn't known him very long, he knew that as surely as he knew his own name.

[siriuslyadog]

He claps Harry on the shoulder, then moves to sit on the bed, stretching his legs out before him.

"I've been moved. I admit I had a bit of a row with Dumbledore. I'm sure you can imagine what it would be like, considering your Aunt and Uncle's home, to be trapped in a place you hate with no say in your own life. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore. Spent six hours trying to convince him to have me moved somewhere I could provide some actual service, so he stationed me in Hogsmeade during term. As a full-time dog, of course, with a hundred different rules." He gave his hand a bit of a wave. "Strictly speaking, I wasn't supposed to tell you until you figured it out for yourself when it came time for Hogsmeade trips, but considering the location and the proximity to the school, I thought it would be safe enough. I've got to have some say, haven't I? I'm your godfather, after all."

Truth be told, Sirius expected Dumbledore was alright with the meeting. He hadn't been fully informed, but he did know the old man was hiding something, something which apparently caused him to pull away from the boy.

The only reason he got his request approved is likely due to the guilt the older man was feeling for not providing Harry an adult figure as an alternative to their relationship. Remus would probably have been the first choice, except for the small problem of Umbridge being so completely prejudice, and having such a tight reign on the school.

"And besides, this way, I'll be closer, if you ever need anything. I trust you to use proper caution, to stay away if things are getting dangerous, or there's a possibility you may be being followed. It can be difficult to feel as though you have someone to talk to if all you're allowed is a letter. The nights I'm not on guard, you can feel free to stop by- so long as it doesn't interfere with your schoolwork. I suspect with Hermione as a friend, though, that's hardly a risk. And I'd enjoy the company."