A Life More Ordinary

Flourish and Blotts--July 1989

"Step back a bit there, Harry," Nathan Blacknoose instructed, gesturing with his fingers. "We need to rearrange a few of the books here."

Sirius put a hand on his godson's shoulder and tugged him backward when Harry didn't move. "Come on, Harry," he said. "We'll go walk around a bit and come back when they're ready."

Harry sighed but he obeyed the slight pressure and turned to follow Sirius out of the shop. "How much longer is it going to take?" he huffed when they were outside.

Surprised at the whinging, Sirius glanced down at him. "Only another hour or so I should think," he said. "They want to make certain everything is perfect, and then the pictures shouldn't take very long at all."

Harry sighed. "But we're supposed to look at the Quidditch shop," he said, his feet beginning to drag along the cobbled stones. "And I wanted to visit Ollivander; I wrote to him that we were coming to Diagon Alley, remember?"

"Yes, I remember," Sirius said patiently. "And we'll have time for all of that just as soon as we've finished with Nathan."

Harry kicked a loose stone. "We've been waiting forever."

"Hasn't been longer than thirty minutes," Sirius said, hiding his amusement.

"Well, feels like forever," Harry muttered. Sirius reached over and mussed his hair. Harry allowed it for only a second before ducking his head. "Why do we have to take pictures anyway?"

"Wizard Weekly is writing an article about Remus and they asked him for a family photograph," Sirius explained even though Harry already knew it. Sirius and Remus had discussed Nathan's request for weeks before finally agreeing. Even though Harry was the Boy-Who-Lived, he was part of Remus' family first.

And Nathan had agreed with the two stipulations; only the witch writing the article and the photographer would be allowed access, and the photographs would be taken somewhere other than Grimmauld Place, though Nathan hadn't been told about the Fidelius Charm. It was enough that they didn't want their home invaded.

"Would you like to visit Ollivander for a few minutes now?" Sirius asked after studying Harry's hunched shoulders. Harry shook his head. Sirius frowned, trying to find a reason for Harry's mood. He'd been tense all morning, even earning an elusive look from Remus when he'd grouched at Sirius over breakfast. He'd been mostly silent since then.

"You didn't eat much this morning," Sirius said as they stopped in front of Eeylops. "Are you hungry?"

Another negative shake of Harry's head was his only answer.

"We have time to go over to Fortescue's. They'll be serving lunch by now."

"Not hungry," Harry said quietly, not looking up.

Sirius slid his hands into his pockets and watched two owls scuffling over a treat. "Are you feeling unwell?" Sirius asked when Harry didn't look up from the display window, but he shook his head again. "Are you upset about something?"

Sirius was convinced of the answer when Harry picked at the seam of his trousers instead of responding. Though he wanted to insist that Harry tell him exactly what was bothering him, Sirius simply waited. He saw Harry peek up at him quickly but didn't comment.

Once he was staring at the owls again, Harry said quietly, "Promise you won't be angry?"

Hiding his surprise, Sirius looked down at his godson, who was very nervously twisting his fingers together as he met Sirius' gaze. "Well," Sirius said slowly, "I can't promise that until I hear what you have to say. But I do promise I'll listen to whatever it is and that I'll be fair."

Harry sucked his lower lip between his teeth, but he didn't look away. Finally, he nodded, pushing his lip back out with a heavy breath. "I invited Draco."

"Here?" Sirius asked, gesturing in surprise to the air around them. "Today?"

Tucking his lip back in his teeth, Harry nodded.

"You invited Draco," Sirius repeated, wanting to make certain he'd heard correctly. Harry didn't answer right away. "There's a much greater chance that I'll be upset with you if you aren't telling me the whole truth," he added, keeping his voice even but his gaze very solemn.

Harry chewed on his lip. "It was sort of his idea," he said, his voice almost too quiet to be distinguished from the noise of the crowded streets.

Sirius sighed. "Harry," he said gently, and his godson's shoulders immediately relaxed, "just tell me exactly what happened, all right? I'm not angry."

"I told him we were coming to Diagon Alley today," Harry finally explained, looking miserable. "And he wanted to meet me here..."

"And his mother wouldn't allow it," Sirius guessed.

Harry shook his head and peeked up at Sirius through his fringe. "He wasn't going to tell her. And he didn't want me to tell you and Remus."

"Why didn't Draco want you to tell us?" Sirius asked, wanting to know if Harry understood precisely why Draco had asked him to withhold information.

"He thought you'd tell his parents," Harry said in a small voice. At least Draco had been honest about that.

"I would have," Sirius said. "Do you know why?"

Harry didn't answer, but Sirius didn't press him, recognizing that tears were probably not far off.

"It's dangerous for Draco to leave without telling anyone where he's going," Sirius explained, keeping his voice quiet and calm, and Harry didn't look away. "Something might have happened to him and then his parents wouldn't know where he was. They wouldn't be able to help him if he got hurt," Sirius continued.

Harry was silent.

"How would you feel if that happened?"

"Awful," Harry admitted softly.

"I would have spoken with Draco's parents if you'd asked," Sirius went on; he could hear the disappointment in his own voice, and as Harry fidgeted in front of him, Sirius knew his godson could as well.

"I told Draco you would ... but he said you might not."

Sirius raised his eyebrows and asked, "Who knows me better, do you think? You or Draco?"

Harry stared at his trainer as he drew an invisible line along the stones underfoot. "Me," he whispered.

Sirius brushed the hair away from his forehead and gripped it as he blew out a frustrated breath. Harry peeked up at him again but looked down just as quickly. Keeping the rest of his frustration to himself, Sirius put an arm around his godson's shoulders and pulled him in. Harry's cheek rested on his shirt and Sirius said quietly, "Thank you for telling me."

Harry didn't answer, but he did press himself a little closer. Sirius' thumb grazed back and forth over the back of Harry's head for a moment as he tried to figure out how to handle the fallout from his godson's error in judgment.

"Where were you supposed to meet him?"

"Quidditch shop..."

Naturally. "What time?" Sirius asked.

"Eleven o'clock," Harry whispered. Sirius sighed again.

"It's nearly eleven now. We'd best go over there." He patted Harry's shoulder when Harry didn't move away. "Come on, kiddo," he said gently. "I don't want Draco wandering about alone."

Harry swiped a hand across his nose as he pulled away. "Are you going to Floo his father?" he asked.

"Their Floos are probably warded," Sirius murmured, keeping his arm around Harry's shoulder and steering him toward Quality Quidditch Supplies. "If they're even connected to the Network..."

That statement usually would have elicited a question from his godson, and though it pained him to do so, Sirius allowed Harry his guilt, hoping it would make a bigger impression than a punishment might.

Draco was already in the shop when they stepped in. His look of surprise was so exaggerated that Sirius nearly snorted.

"Harry?" he said, his eyes wide. "Is that you? What a surprise to see you here."

Harry stuffed his hands into his pockets, glancing up at Sirius' carefully-composed features and back again at Draco. "Erm," he said in a low tone, "Sirius knows about our ... er, plan."

"Why, Harry," Draco said, not missing a beat, "I have no idea what you mean."

"Draco," Harry said firmly, frowning a little now. "I told him, so you can stop pretending."

Draco scowled very suddenly; he pushed his pale fringe out of his eyes as it fell forward. "Why did you do that?" he demanded.

Harry shrugged.

Draco lifted his chin and focused on Sirius when Harry didn't answer. "You can't make me go home."

"I am quite capable of Apparating with a passenger," Sirius returned evenly, gazing squarely at the miniature Lucius. He had no intention of stepping foot anywhere on the Malfoys' property, but Draco didn't need to know that.

Draco's shoulders drooped. "I don't want to go home. Mother and Father aren't there anyway," he said sullenly.

"Where are they?" Sirius asked, holding back a sigh.

"Iceland."

"How did you get here?" Sirius asked as he wondered how much time Draco actually spent with his parents. Draco turned his eyes to the silver snake cufflinks decorating his sleeves.

"Dobby brought me."

"Where is he?" Sirius glanced around, a bit relieved that Draco wasn't completely alone here.

"I needed a few things," Draco said, plucking absently at the fine silk of his sleeve.

"He's running errands?"

Draco looked up again; the scowl didn't hide the uncertainty in his eyes. "I don't need a babysitter. I'm nine."

"Nine, you say?" Sirius mused, putting a hand to his chin. "Old enough to know you shouldn't sneak here to meet Harry, then?"

Draco's eyes slid to Harry, who didn't seem to have any support to offer; Sirius was rather glad of that.

"Maybe," Draco finally admitted.

"Absolutely," Sirius countered and Draco sighed. "Do you have a way to contact Dobby?"

"I have an amulet on a chain," Draco said quietly, "but I forgot it."

Sirius narrowed his eyes as he attempted to assess the validity of the statement, but either Draco really had left it at home or he was an exceptional liar.

"You're going to take me back home, then," Draco mumbled as he kicked at an imaginary rock with his toe. Sirius glanced at Harry, who was looking nearly as dejected as Draco.

Sirius raked his fingers through is hair again and decided he was complete pants at this parenting thing. "You should probably stay with us until Dobby returns so that you aren't home alone-"

Draco's head jerked up. His surprise was genuine this time. "You aren't going to make me leave?"

Sirius shook his head, grimacing slightly. "I don't feel comfortable leaving you alone." It was partially true, after all. "Harry and I need to meet Remus at Flourish and Blotts. You can come with us, and then we'll all have lunch afterward."

Draco sneaked another glance at Harry. Harry gave him a little smile, and Draco finally nodded. "Thank you."

Surprised by the gratitude, it took Sirius a moment to respond, but finally, he nodded. "I expect both of you to be on your best behavior," he said, giving his godson a particularly stern eye. Harry nodded, flushing a little. "All right. Let's be on our way, then." He gestured for the boys to precede him. Draco turned without further prodding, though it took a few extra seconds for Harry to pull his eyes from Sirius and join his friend.

"I can't believe he didn't send me home," Draco whispered as soon as Harry fell in step beside him. "My father wouldn't care if you were left all alone. He would have said it was a 'suitable consequence for your misdeeds'." He shrugged when Harry glanced at him. "He always says that when he sends me away after I misbehave."

His eyes wide with alarm, Harry echoed, "Sends you away?"

"Only for a day or two," Draco said. "When I do something that doesn't befit wizards of our breeding."

"But ... where does he send you?" Harry asked, his voice weak, and Sirius hated to hear it.

"One of the elves stays with me in my wing until Father sends for me again," Draco said with another shrug.

"And you're just all alone?"

"Dobby or Minxa are there with me."

"Oh," Harry said quietly. Draco nudged him as they passed Gambol and Japes, the joke shop that had been around since Sirius' Hogwarts days. "Do you think Sirius will let us go in there?"

"If we ask him," Harry said; Sirius smiled. "But we have to go to the book shop first."

"It won't take long, will it?"

"Sirius said it won't."

"Here we are," Sirius said; he reached over Harry's and Draco's heads to push the door open. Remus looked up as soon as they came in; his eyebrows shot up as his gaze swept over the two boys.

"Long story," Sirius murmured.

"Ah," Nathan said, "you're here. And who's this?" he asked, smiling at Draco. Draco's gaze traveled up and down the tall wizard. He must have decided Nathan was as worthy as he.

"Draco Malfoy," he answered. "And you are?"

With an amused smile, Nathan introduced himself.

"Are you related to Thomas Blacknoose?" Draco asked eagerly. "He was my mother's great-great grandfather through a marriage to the Firths."

"A cousin, a few generations removed, I believe," Nathan said; he shared a glance with Sirius. Lucius would be most displeased to see his son speaking with Nathan, a blood traitor if ever there was one. He had been an Auror during the first war with Voldemort. He'd left after a Ministry cover-up led to the deaths of three innocent Muggleborns. "Sirius, if you would come over here, Evelyn can begin. We'll need Harry in just a moment; he and Draco can sit right here," he said, pointing to a low bench near the camera.

Sirius nodded. He turned to his godson and settled a hand on the back of his head. "You and Draco wait right here, all right?" Harry nodded. "We'll just be a moment," he added with an encouraging smile as Harry continued to gaze up at him. And then, Harry's arms were tight around Sirius' middle, squeezing him hard. Sirius' response to the unexpected embrace was automatic. He put his free arm around his godson's shoulders, giving comforting pressure to the tense muscles. Neither of them said anything, and Sirius found his throat aching a little as Harry squeezed harder.

Sirius caught Draco's eye then as the blond boy moved into his line of vision. His eyebrows were scrunched together as he watched Harry hugging Sirius. And then he swallowed and turned away to stare out one of the large shop windows.

--

"Twenty minutes," Remus said to the two excited boys after they'd finished lunch. They were standing just inside the joke shop and Harry nodded obediently at Remus' direction. He had already been in enough of a fix today. "Don't leave the shop," Remus added firmly.

"We won't," Harry promised; he nudged Draco since the other boy didn't seem to be paying attention.

"We won't," Draco echoed impatiently.

Remus nodded, with a smile from Sirius as well, and Draco grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him away.

"Have you ever seen the fireworks here?" Draco asked excitedly. "We had some at our house a few weeks ago; one of Father's friends brought them."

"The Weasleys have them at their house sometimes," Harry said as they inspected a bin full of bright green ones. "Mrs. Weasley doesn't like them much."

"Mother doesn't either. Look at these, Harry," Draco breathed. "I saw one once; it makes a huge dragon when it explodes."

"Yeah?" Harry leaned over Draco's shoulder to get a better view. "They come in all sorts of colors!"

"I think I'll buy one ... three or four maybe."

Harry glanced over at his friend. "Do you have enough galleons, do you think? They look awfully expensive."

"Well, of course," Draco said, sounding slightly annoyed for some reason. "I always have plenty of money with me."

"You do?" Harry asked uncertainly.

Draco straightened. "Don't you?"

"Not usually," Harry said with a shrug. "Sirius and Remus give me an allowance but I don't usually bring it-"

"An allowance?" Draco demanded. "But why?"

"I don't know. Ron has an allowance," Harry said, with a shrug.

"But the Weasleys haven't any money to speak of," Draco said. "And you have nearly as much as we do."

"I just told you; I don't have any money with me-"

"Not with you," Draco said, waving his hand impatiently. "At Gringotts. Father said your parents left you all of their money, and the Potters had loads of galleons--the Blacks as well. Your vault is probably overflowing with gold."

"I've never seen it."

Draco's eyes popped even wider. "You've never been to your vault?"

Harry shook his head and Draco sighed.

"Really, Harry, you're not a proper pureblooded wizard at all, are you?"

Irritated, Harry frowned. "Sirius says that whether or not someone is a pureblood isn't important. My grandparents weren't even magical. And Sirius says they were fine people," he said stubbornly. "If you don't like them, then you can't like me either."

"Well, I didn't say they weren't nice," Draco huffed.

"You said they weren't proper."

"No I didn't. I said you weren't proper."

"Oh." Confused, Harry shook his head. "Well, it's the same thing."

"No it isn't," Draco insisted. "And I didn't say I didn't like your grandparents."

"Well, you don't like Ron, and he's my friend too."

"Mother wouldn't like me to be friends with Ron," Draco said, a line forming between his eyebrows. "She doesn't want me to be your friend either. But you're still my friend ... aren't you?"

"Yeah," Harry said, smiling a little. Draco's forehead smoothed out and he smiled too. "Let's go see if they have any of those hollowed-out books with the secrecy charms. Ron's brother Percy has one."

"What does he keep in it?" Draco asked.

"Something that Mrs. Weasley is never allowed to see. The twins said she found Charlie's once and she was hoarse for two days after she finished shouting at him. At Mr. Weasley too, but I'm not sure why."

"Mrs. Weasley shouts a lot, doesn't she?" Draco asked, shaking his head.

Harry grinned. "She frightens Sirius sometimes, I think. He gets really nervous when she shouts."

Draco laughed and together they went up the stairs.