Potter's Mill

Potter's Mill

"AAAAHHH!" Vernon Dursley recoiled from the gaunt figure on his doorstep, backpedaling into the house so quickly he forgot to shut the door. Sirius Black watched him go with a malicious grin of satisfaction on his face. "That about what you had in mind, Harry?" He glanced at his ward, hiding behind his back.

Harry smiled and nodded.

"C'mon," Sirius said, walking into the house, "let's get this over with." Harry followed his godfather into the house and pointed at the cupboard under the stairs. "That's where I lived, for years, until they gave me Dudley's second bedroom; tried to bribe me into forgetting about getting the letters from Hogwarts."

Sirius looked into the small space, his eyes hot. "Pitiful! My cell at Azkaban was bigger than this. And don't even think about it, Petunia!"

Harry blinked, and looked into the kitchen where Aunt Petunia was frozen in the act of reaching for a kitchen knife. Sirius straightened up, slowly shut the cupboard door, and then turned around to trade glowers with Harry's aunt. "I'd say it was nice to see you again, Petunia, but I can see that you haven't changed." Aunt Petunia's eyes were hard, but she said nothing.

"You two know each other?" Harry gasped, looking from his aunt to his godfather in stupefaction. Uncle Vernon, on the far side of the kitchen, was standing beside Dudley, who sat frozen, a spoonful of cereal still hanging in front of his lips, his eyes rooted on the tableau unfolding in front of him.

Sirius chuckled, his face wearing the same ironic grin he'd had when Harry had threatened to kill him in the Shrieking Shack. "She didn't tell you? Well, of course she wouldn't...probably spent your entire lifetime trying to bury her past..." He snorted, and then explained. "One time James came to take Lily out on a date; Lily was still trying to make it up with her sister, and insisted on a double-date, so I partnered with the Ice Queen here." Harry stared in shock.

Uncle Vernon goggled. "Petunia?"

"Get out of my home!" Aunt Petunia snapped.

"Of course," Sirius went on, still grinning, "we all had a terrible time. She spent most of the time sniping about how Lily always had the best of everything, and that we were all freaks. She said nothing about the flowers I'd brought, covered with pixie dust so they'd glow in the dark. Cost me two Galleons, too."

"Get out!"

"Nothing will please us more. But, Harry," he pointed, "has something to tell you."

"I just came to tell you that I'm moving out, permanently! This is Sirius Black," he said for the benefit of Uncle Vernon and Dudley, whose reactions were everything he'd hoped for. Dudley, clearly remembering the newscasts the previous Autumn, went into shock and dropped his spoon. It struck the bowl a glancing blow, and dumping it and all the sugary milk onto his lap and thence onto the floor where it shattered on Aunt Petunia's gleaming floor. Uncle Vernon's eyes contracted and he backed up, practically climbing into the sink in an effort to escape. Apparently he remembered the news bulletins about the man, described as 'armed and dangerous'. "Sirius is my godfather, and now that he's been freed from prison, and exonerated of his crimes, he's my legal guardian. He's invited me to live with him, and I've accepted." He waited for a moment, but his relatives said nothing, so he continued. "I'll just check to see if I've left anything behind, and then I'm gone, for good."

Harry ducked out and ran up the stairs to his room. He doubted whether there was anything he'd forgotten, but the reactions of his aunt and uncle and cousin were a sure sign that anything he left would be immediately destroyed. And, he never wanted to come back here again! After a thorough search of his room, and his favorite hiding places. One yielded a pack of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, and another a half-empty box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, weeded down to the ones he didn't like. He started down the stairs, and then had a thought worthy of his godfather, and tossed the Beans box onto Dudley's bed. Boogers, sprouts, and pepper beans would leave Dudley with a taste of him for a while!

"All set," he announced as he came down the stairs.

"Over here," Sirius said, from the doorway, where Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were facing him down. Harry noticed Dudley was nowhere to be seen--probably holed up someplace clutching his buttocks!

As the two were walking down to the street, the door slammed behind them, and they both heard the lock snap shut after them.

Sirius Black's beloved flying motorcycle, which Hagrid had returned, started up with a roar. The two put on their helmets, and Sirius, with a huge grin, glanced back at Harry. "I hope your aunt and uncle like the gift I left them." Harry looked curious, and then started, as Sirius was convulsed with laughter. "I slipped a boggart into your old cupboard!" Harry started giggling, and they both laughed until tears rolled down their cheeks. Then the engine revved, and they left the ground in a blast of magical dust.

Harry looked around the room, and then back at his godfather, "This is all mine?"

"Well, we'll fix it up, of course. But if you don't like this room, we can always switch to another. No shortage of rooms here!" Sirius walked over the threshold and laid one hand on his godson's shoulder. "This was my room when I lived here, and it only seems fitting to give it to you. I know Grimmauld Place is pretty grim, but we can turn the place inside-out if we want. It's ours now, after all."

Harry looked at the iron bed with stained sheets, the stone walls with guttering torches in them, the hard wooden floors, and found himself thinking almost wistfully of his old room on Privet Drive: not the company, surely, but the room itself. It was certainly a cheerier than this place, but here, at least, he had someone who cared about him. He glanced up at Sirius' face, marveling at the good fortune they'd had to meet Dumbledore at the exact moment they'd emerged from the tunnel leading to the Shrieking Shack. If they'd come upon the Dementors, or Cornelius Fudge, or even if Professor Lupin hadn't had his special tonic that night, then he wouldn't be standing here today, in the company of his godfather! Peter Pettigrew might have escaped, and Sirius might have had to flee, go on the run, and Harry would be back at Privet Drive now instead of in this new home.

"Master Sirius, here is your drink." The sinister-looking house-elf appeared, handing over a glass of tepid water, with dust and filth floating on the surface. "Oh, my poor mistress. What would she think, her nasty blood-traitor son, returned with a terrible..."

"Kreacher, this is unacceptable!" Sirius poured the water onto the floor. "I can't drink this!" He gestured at his godson. "Harry and I need to celebrate! Go down to the basement and bring up a bottle of Father's Glad Tidings champagne--one of the magnums he laid aside to celebrate Voldemort's Victory Party!"

Harry glanced at the glass in Sirius' hand. "And clean glasses for both of us!"

Kreacher glared at Harry, and then flinched as though he'd been struck. "Miserable traitor...how he managed to lay low the greatest wizard of our times...oh my poor master, how he would recoil at the thought of his wine being drunk by these two..."

Sirius nodded to Harry. "Good thought, Harry. Testing your authority on him like that. Kreacher may not like you, but he'll have to obey. Since I'm legally your guardian, that makes you a part of the family--and he's bound to obey all family members."

Harry nodded absently, and glanced around at the room. It would take him a long time to get used to a place like this. Suddenly an idea struck him like a blow. "Sirius, didn't you say that you didn't really like being here?" When his godfather nodded, Harry plunged on, "Then why don't we get a new house? Someplace in the country, maybe, like the Weasley's house, The Burrow? I've got enough money to support us for a bit, and you could certainly get some more by selling this place!"

Sirius Black looked at him, and then as the simplicity of the idea struck him he nodded. "Capital idea, Harry!"

Six weeks later Harry, Sirius, and Remus Lupin were strolling up the drive of a restored mill house, the gravel crunching under their feet. Harry already loved the sight of it: restored wood with white trim, with an attached garage. Ivy climbed one wall, adding to a rustic feeling that was so different from the suburban squeaky-clean feeling that Privet Drive had always radiated. The mill itself faced a small river, which spilled into a fair-sized pool not far from the house. Already Harry could imagine swimming there in the hot summers.

"This what you had in mind, Harry?" Sirus asked, stopping to stare at the place.

"Everything, and more," Harry said, grinning. "I know I'm going to love it here." He grinned again at the memory of Uncle Vernon's horror at meeting Sirius for the first time--the startled recognition, the screaming at the man who had appeared on the television, described by the announcer's description of Sirius as an insane mass-murderer. But now, staring at the man whom Professor Flitwick had called his father's inseparable friend, he felt a glow in his chest unlike anything he'd ever felt before. Though he would never have parents of his own, he knew Sirius would be the best substitute--a combination of friend and older brother. Probably that was what his Mum and Dad had in mind when they had named him godfather.

"We're all going to love it!" Sirius said, clapping Lupin on the shoulder. "Right, Moony?"

Lupin looked startled. "Padfoot? What do you mean?"

"I mean you're going to enjoy living here with Harry and me, right?" He glanced at Harry, who seemed stunned by the idea. "I know you're struggling to stay alive. That Umbridge woman's made it hard for you to stay employed; I heard from Mundungus Fletcher that you've even taken on a few smuggling jobs to make ends meet. Well, no longer! Here at Potter's Mill, friends stick together!"

"Potter's Mill?" Lupin was struck dumb.

"Well, the place needs a name, it's either that or Marauder's Manor." Sirius grinned. "All those years in Azkaban I dreamed up quite a few places I'd rather be, and this was one of them!" He walked forward toward the front door, and waved for the others to follow him. The door suddenly opened, and a house-elf was bowing them in, "Master Sirius, welcome." The front door boasted of a tall glass chandelier hanging from a high ceiling, the walls were a soothing taupe, while expensive-looking rugs covered the river-rock floors. Off to the right, a polished wood-floored living room waited with inviting-looking furniture. Dobby was setting a tea tray on a low table, and waved at Harry, who started. "Like the place, Harry?" He followed his godson's line of sight and smiled. "Really surprising, that one. I was looking the place over, and he showed up at the back door, asking for work."

"It's brilliant!" He looked at Sirius. "But...this must have cost a fortune. I know I didn't pull enough money out of my Gringott's vault to pay for all of this."

"No, you didn't. Actually, the Ministry of Magic paid for it; part of a settlement I got from them for taking twelve years out of my life! And with Dumbledore buying my old house, for who knows what, we'll be living well for some time to come." He looked back at Lupin. "You are going to stay with us, aren't you, Moony?"

Lupin nodded, and quickly pulled them both into an embrace. "Thank you. Thank you, both!"

Harry couldn't remember any holiday quite as enjoyable. He woke late almost everyday, breakfasting with either Sirius or Professor Lupin, listening to their anecdotes about their own years at Hogwarts, and sometimes asking questions about his mother and father, and getting more of a feel for whom his late parents had been. He was free to do what he liked, whenever he wished. Their home even had a ten-acre patch of woods on the rear of the property, perfect for either solitary walks, or romps with his favorite dog! The river pool he'd seen earlier was in fact excellent for swimming during the hot months, and sometimes Sirius transformed just to dogpaddle around, which always made Harry smile. Even Professor Lupin's monthly morphs couldn't mar the joy he felt--an apothecary in Diagon Alley had been employed to supply his formula, and once ingested, the wolf he became simply curled up in the basement and slept.

Dobby and the other house elves served them delicious meals and after several weeks, Harry noticed that his godfather had started putting on weight. After a few wry remarks from Professor Lupin, the three of them started jogging in the morning. Kreacher had taken up residence in the basement and was seen little, which was all for the better.

Visitors were something that Sirius seemed to enjoy most. His time in Azkaban had left him hungry for company, and the neighbors in the area seemed to welcome the odd threesome. A plump witch who lived on the other side of the forest sometimes came calling; after a while, Harry suspected she was sweet on Professor Lupin, and he privately wished her luck. But best of all, when Harry asked if Ron Weasley could stay for a week or so, Sirius insisted the whole Weasley family come, instead.

The visit worked out better than Harry could have hoped. For one thing, Mr. Weasley greeted Sirius as, "cousin", which brought his family up short. After the initial exclamations died down, Sirius explained the family relations, about how his great-great aunt had married into the Weasley family, "...Arthur is my second cousin, once removed." He glanced at the Weasley children; standing beside the fireplace they had emerged from. "Which makes you lot twice-removed cousins."

Ron and Harry looked at each other, and then Ginny giggled. Fred & George grinned at each other, then Fred spoke up. "Maybe, but I like the idea of 'Uncle Sirius' better!"

"Fred!" Mrs. Weasley warned, but Sirius waved her off. "I've been called worse, Molly." Lupin directed the house-elves to take their luggage, and then waved them all into the living room. Tea was poured, and they all took chairs. After a few pleasantries, Mr. Weasley remembered something and dug into the breast pocket of his jacket, "Mr. Fudge asked me to give this to you, Sirius. Don't know what it is, exactly, but I think I can guess." Sirius took the envelope, opened it, and read the letter while Harry watched him, concern on his face. "What is it, Sirius?"

Sirius' face was expressionless, but he shook his head and looked up. "The Ministry is offering me a job as an Auror!" He barked a harsh laugh and shook the letter. "Kingsley Shacklebolt's been called to Albania on some other business, and Fudge wants me to take over as Auror-in-Chief."

Arthur accepted a biscuit from a house-elf's plate and smiled. "Quite an honor."

George grinned. "You dodged the Aurors for so long, Fudge probably wants to know how you did it."

"Or, at least have you working for him so you can catch other people trying to do the same." Fred added.

Ginny nodded. "You want to catch a fugitive, you hire one."

Sirius glanced at the letter and then passed it to Harry. "They still haven't apologized for holding me for so long without a trial. The settlement was nice, but I'd still like to hear them admit to the mistake." He saw Harry's concern, and Mrs. Weasley's worried look, and abandoned that line of thought. "It would be nice, I suppose, but I've already been offered a job which I'm taking."

"What?" said Harry, "You never told me."

Sirius grinned at him. "I didn't want to spoil the surprise. Still don't."

* * *

"...please join me," said Dumbledore to everyone in the great hall, "in welcoming our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Mr. Sirius Black!" The assembled students gasped as they finally recognized the new person seated at the staff table. Sirius, his hair newly clipped and dressed in a black leather duster, stood up and waved. There was a scattered burst of applause, particularly hard from Harry and the Weasleys. Harry saw his godfather look straight at him and wink.

"Harry," said Hermione, "look at Professor Snape." Harry gulped--he had never seen such malevolent hatred on the potions professor's face before. If looks had been spells, Sirius would have been dead many times over!

"I think this is going to be a very interesting year." Ron said.

Hermione nodded. "To say the least!"