Toujours Pur, Toujours Famille

Toujours Pur, Toujours Famille

Chapter 2: The Potters

Anne sighed as she placed plates on the table. For five years now, that exact night, she would always lay out one extra plate. Also, it was not unusual to smell something good coming from the kitchen but on that night the smell of her famous double layer fudge and vanilla cake wafted through the whole house, intoxicating anyone that stepped in. Six nights held special happenings in the Potter household: Christmas Eve, Valentine's Day night, the three members' birthdays, and Sirius Black's birthday.

"Mum, is he here yet?"

"No, James. And no screaming inside the house!"

"You just did!"

"Don't argue with me!"

"Hypocrite!"

Anne laughed to herself and turned with a fake stern look on her face as she heard the familiar stomps of feet on the stairs. A short figure with overly large glasses and untamed raven hair stood in front of her, a charming grin on his face.

"Good evening Mum. You're looking lovely tonight."

"Well thank you Mr. Suave. Hint though, save it for someone that hasn't lived with you for eleven years."

"Oh, you know there is no other kid that you would enjoy living with for those eleven years."

Before he could move, Anne picked him up and swung him around. One thing she found funny that he despised was that even at the age of eleven, his mother could still lift him because of his small size.

"Mum!" he whined, wriggling out of her arms. She laughed and let go of him, allowing his dignity to be kept.

"Jeez James, I knew you were a midget but that's just pathetic."

James turned with a sour expression on his face. "Oh, bugger off."

"James!" Anne cried, hitting him over the head.

"Oh, right, I meant happy birthday," James said, rubbing his now sore head. "How do you manage to get me into trouble the first ten seconds you're here?"

Sirius grinned. "It's a gift."

Anne walked over and swept her practically adopted son into her arms. "Happy birthday dear. And how are you?"

"Good, thanks for having me Mrs. P."

"There now James, you should learn some manners from Sirius here."

James, standing behind his mother so she was not able to see, tossed a dirty look at his friend. The two boys had met years ago at one of the ministry functions. They had hit it off immediately and when James' parents had met the young Black, their wariness of his family history left almost immediately and they fell in love with the young boy.

"James, take Sirius upstairs to get him settled in."

"Yes mother." As he grabbed his friend's arm and they walked up the stairs, James grumbled so she could not hear him, "It's not like he hasn't been here a million times before..."

Anne stared after them, a pleased grin on her face and her arms folded. "Please don't make a mess!" she called after them.

"Fat chance of that." Anne stood still, someone's hands over her eyes. "Guess who?"

A grin spread over her face and she turned around to face her husband. He wore a disappointed look. "Something wrong love?" she asked, leaning in.

He huffed. "No. Just, you weren't surprised."

"Harold if I hadn't known that was you, do you really think I would have just let you stand there behind me?"

Frowning, he shrugged. "Is there anything I can do to surprise you anymore?"

Anne looked down sadly at the arms that had come around her waist. "Be home a little more and when you are don't just work in your study."

Harold kissed his wife's forehead and held her to him. He simply replied, "I wish I could do that too." Anne held onto him tightly for a moment and then pulled out of his hug.

Once again, she now had a smile on her face. However, the sad look in her eyes betrayed her. "We have two with us tonight."

"Oh, how could I have forgotten? Where are they?"

"I sent them upstairs a minute ago."

"And how is he?"

The ties they felt to Sirius made them constantly worry about him. Whenever he came over they always subtly checked for any injuries. They had been to school with both of his parents and knew what they were capable of. Suspicions were constantly confirmed when Sirius came with abrasions. Only small ones (a cut lip he got from "falling off his bed" or a bruise on his arm from where he "ran into the wall" even though it looked like a hand) that were fixed easily. Despite Anne and Harold's caring they could already tell that Sirius had harder years coming up.

"Nothing was wrong with him that I could see. Just his usual polite self," Anne said. But she knew something had happened. He was due to come over in almost an hour. He never came early unless there was something at home keeping him away.

"I'm going to go say hello," he whispered in her ear. She kissed him lightly. "Anne, since the boys will be distracted all night and you know I don't have to work tomorrow-"

"Get out!" she laughed, cutting him off and kicking towards him.

"That's a yes?" he asked, a sly grin on his face.

"Out!"

Harold ran light-footed up the stone steps and into the hall where the west wing bedrooms were located. Many years ago when Anne and Harold had purchased the house, they had given more or less the whole wing to James. Granted it was the smallest part of the house with only six bedrooms, two bathrooms, a small library, and a spare room that James had turned into a quidditch shrine.

Laughter was coming out of the door closest to the stairs. Harold peeked in and saw the two of them joking around as they played with a pair of wooden swords that had been treasured by both of them for many years.

"I would try a different defense on him because that doesn't seem to be working," Harold said to Sirius. James looked up with a grin from where he had his friend pinned to the ground with the makeshift sword.

"Dad!" he exclaimed. Harold swept his son into his arms and kissed the top of his head.

"I see all those hard years of teaching you a bit of swordplay helped," he said, laughing good-naturedly as he pulled Sirius into a one armed embrace. "And how are you?" he asked, both boys too young to catch the deep concern in his voice.

"Fine, thank you," he responded politely, looking down at the flagstones on the floor.

Harold smiled and tousled his hair. "I think your mum has dinner about ready downstairs. Five minutes?"

"Just as soon as I've beaten him," Sirius said, picking up his fallen sword and bending his knees slightly. James grinned, facing his opponent.

"I'd like to see you try."

As they went at it, Harold walked out, chuckling to himself. Almost as an after thought, halfway down the hall he shouted out, "And happy birthday, Sirius!"

For an answer he got a good-natured, out of breath, "Thank you!"

~~~

"...Happy Birthday dear Sirius, happy birthday to you!"

Everyone clapped as he blew out the eleven candles on his cake. Anne flipped the lights on and took the cake to cut it.

"What did you wish for?" James asked. Sirius stuck his tongue out at him.

"I can't tell you or it won't come true, duh."

"He's right James," Anne said, putting a piece of the cake in front of Sirius who dug in almost immediately. James took off when he got his piece.

"Last one done is a muggle," James said through a mouthful of cake as he continued shoveling. Within minutes, they were pushing and laughing as they raced up the steps and calling back, "Thanks for dinner!"

"So," Harold said, wrapping his arms around Anne, "now that they're up for the night..."

Anne laughed. "Since it seems like you're not going to quit. I'll be upstairs in half an hour." She kissed him lightly and went back to the dishes.

"Bloody hell, mate. What is that?"

Sirius froze when he heard his friend's voice. He had been carelessly removing his shirt to change into his pajamas, completely forgetting the mark on his shoulder.

"Nothing," he said quietly, pulling a gray shirt over his head. About two years ago when he started spending once a month over at the Potters', they had agreed it would be best if he had clothes that he could keep at the house. So an extra dresser was placed in James' room with drawers for him.

"Don't lie to me Black," James said, throwing a pillow at him jokingly.

Sirius turned and glared. "It's nothing. Just forget it."

Without another word he flopped down onto the large king size bed and turned his back to James. Confused, James blew out the lights and lay down, staring out the window. He was just drifting off to sleep when Sirius spoke.

"They said since I was going to be away from home, I needed to remember where my loyalties lie- with the family. And that while there I should uphold he Black name," he muttered, his voice wavering. He could feel James' eyes on him even though his back was still turned. Slowly he pulled down the collar of his shirt to that his shoulder was showing. This time James got a good look at it. A dark black mark intricately etched into the skin in the shape of the Black crest. He didn't want to think about how it got there.

"Sir...I- "

"You can't tell anyone about it. I mean it James."

"But my dad, he could-"

"No! Promise...promise you won't tell."

Sirius was now looking at him and James was scared to see his friend's eyes as desperate as they were. "I promise."

"Swear it." He was holding out a hand.

James smiled and they did their secret handshake. "I swear."

It was silent for a moment and then, "How do you think we're going to be sorted?"

He looked over at Sirius who was now grinning. "Well," James said, "my dad told me you have to battle a troll."

"Andy said that you have to do a bunch of complicated spells in front of everyone..."

"My mum told me something boring, something about a hat..."

"You have to pull a rabbit out of it!"

"How about rice pudding...?"

"You're an idiot."

"What I like rice pudding..."

"It's disgusting."

"I like it...I seriously like it. Ow! What?"

"Don't be an idiot."

"Moron."

"Loser."

"'Night."

"G'night."