3,102Chapter 60: A Delving We Will Go
Thursday, 17th August 1995.
Hermione was utterly fascinated.
She knew from experience that the goblins were excellent at working stone and metal. And she had seen the opulent manner in which they had decorated both the upper and lower reaches of the Bank up in Diagon Alley. But a small part of her had still expected something similar to the areas in which the vaults were kept. Appearing as if they were dug simply into the deep stone underneath London.
One would think that goblin-carved tunnels through the very flesh of the earth would be dark and bare. Naked stone barely visible in torchlight as you wander through the deep encroaching blackness. Thin and narrow passages barely high enough for a tall man to pass through. Admittedly, there were a few such passages, usually bearing off of the main path for one reason or another.
Yet, as with much of the Goblin Nation, what humanity saw above ground was a mere fraction of their existence. The Under was where Goblin society truly thrived. It was, after all, their natural habitat. And the Vregr Dehur, the goblins' Deep Roads, bore the signs of that depth.
The walls were still carved from naked stone, but it was not the usual rough-hewn chunks of a simple mine or cave. The natural surfaces were still there, but they had been shaped and guided into smooth pathways. Every few dozen metres large intricate archways stretched up overhead across high-vaulted ceilings, supporting the tonnes of earth pressing down on the impressive structures at all times.
And they were far from dark and spooky tunnels. At every one of these archways, through some magic unknown to her, the goblins channelled the blood of the earth up and into small falls of thick bright magma. The glowing liquid stone poured from intricate spouts providing both heat and light as it fell into swirling pools that drained away through unseen plumbing.
Even after hours in the depths, her breath still caught with each new sight as their guides led them deeper into the Roads.
So much so that when Gekvir had brought them to their first crevasse in the earth, she had been left momentarily bereft of thought. The wide chasm cut through the incredible tunnel as if someone had driven an axe into the ground. The passage on their side had ended with a sharp clean edge, and the same was visible on the far side as well, stretching away beyond sight.
Bridging the space between the two openings was a wide stone construct that was suspended through some unseen mechanism, leaving a wide view over the sides all the way down to the glowing magma fields below. What she could see, however, were the small expansion joints all the way across. Similar to the way muggle bridges accounted for thermal expansion.
While the area around London wasn't often subject to seismic activity, the goblins had obviously built their bridges to account for the gradual movements of the earth itself. Her studies had informed her just how much the seemingly static shape of the Earth continuously changed. Massive tectonic plates ground against one another in a never-ending dance of change. Even here, in the middle of those plates, smaller fissures played that planetary shift on a much smaller scale. Not that there was a true fault within miles of London.
The group had traversed seven such bridges now and still, they fascinated Hermione. Each time she had wanted to stop and examine the incredible designs. To figure out how they worked. To admire the craftsmanship that had gone into their creation and upkeep.
So distracted was she by the sights and sounds of the incredible feats of goblin engineering, that the first appearance of Kitty surprised Hermione as it leaped forth from Harry's wand. However, the massive feline did not immediately rush off after a target.
Hermione turned to Harry and he seemed wary, but not concerned. Perhaps he had felt a draft of the occasionally cool air currents that washed through the underground space, especially so close to the fissures. Or, they were approaching Dementors at last.
Rockjaw held up a hand to the other guards travelling with them. Unlike up in the bank, these guards were not outfitted with shining metal plate armour. They travelled far lighter in the Roads, covered in dragonscale and leather. The outfits allowed them to move quickly and quietly, while still protecting against the few dangerous creatures they would encounter. But as their main enemy down here were the Dementors, and they did not attack their food physically, armour was not an aid in the depths.
#This place has been troublesome lately.# Rockjaw said softly in the goblin tongue, and Hermione was very grateful to her past self for studying the language. Their guides had never set foot upon the surface, and as such, had never learned the English that was required to deal with most humans in Britain.
#I can feel something nearby.# Harry added, casting his eyes about as Hermione summoned her wand and Dawn.
The two spectral cats gave the tunnel an even more surreal glow as their pale light complemented the fiery glow from the magma channels.
"Dawn, prowl." She instructed, setting her snow leopard to slink forth into the small passages leading off the main path here.
Ahead of them, there were signs of a camp having been set up, and the group could hear the sounds of the goblins actively mining somewhere nearby as it echoed back up through the stone channels now that they had stopped moving themselves. There was still quite a distance to the miners, judging by how faintly it was coming to her ears.
This had been the main point of contention with her parents the day before. At least with their defensive uses of Kitty and Dawn so far, the Dementors' location had been known. They had reacted to either an attack on themselves or had gone to a defined place to ferret out the known infestation present in that one small location. But once they had explained the breadth of the Vregr Dehur, her parents had been concerned.
With the hundreds of pathways leading out of the main channels, the Dementors could feasibly come upon them from any direction. And they still only had two patronuses capable of causing physical damage to the monstrous beasts.
Which was why Remus now summoned his own wolf patronus to patrol around the group. The normally large predator landed deftly on the stone, but even he looked tiny compared to Kitty as she sat in front of Harry, watching the way ahead curiously. Kitty towered over them all in this pose, Harry's head only reaching the corner of the cat's mighty shoulder.
They had settled on a general plan for their first encounter, not knowing exactly how they might come upon the monsters they sought.
Whichever adult was accompanying them on that trip would summon their patronus and provide cover for the group. Keeping the Dementors away from Harry and Hermione while they allowed the two large felines to do their work. This deep underground, patronus lightning was out of the question, so they would retreat if they came across any particularly large concentrations. The general idea was to find the places where small groups had been harrying the new construction projects and pick off the stragglers as a test of methods.
The goblins, who were used to fighting against the Dementors, had ways of keeping them at bay as well. The clothing they all wore was lined with runes designed to repel the beasts as much as possible, and the dragonscale prevented their scabbed cold hands from getting purchase on skin. A dementor's cold touch could leave wounds that did not leave when they did. Finally, their enchanted swords and pikes were able to penetrate Dementor flesh. It was not uncommon for Dementors to lose fingers or limbs down here. But the loss of a limb did not remove the true danger of the Dementors.
Despite her confidence in their abilities, Hermione felt a shudder of fear grip her at the unknowns of it all. For a moment, she wondered if they wouldn't have been better off reading the horrid books instead. But only for a moment. It had taken only two each before she and Harry had agreed that their contents were not something either of them wanted to learn.
Their examination would fall to Sirius and the other adults. Even her brief skimming of the tomes had left her feeling colder than proximity to the monsters they now hunted. The authors of some of those books were truly evil and despicable people, and she was glad that they were all dead. Add in the fact that the goblins had assured them they had a viable way to destroy the Cup once they had located it and the need to explore alternatives had diminished. Their work down here was now much more important to the destruction of the next Horcrux than studying up on the deplorable magic involved.
Her attention returned fully to the now as Kitty, Dawn and Hati all turned to glance at a nearby passageway, leading off the main thoroughfare. All three patronuses seemed to sense something that was still beyond their own ability to track.
Hati, the wolf patronus of Remus that Sirius had intentionally named after the Norse warg that would supposedly swallow the moon, positioned himself in front of the group. Kitty finally stood, dwarfing them all as she padded forward, heading for the opening. Dawn quickly fell in beside the large spectral cat and both slunk lower to the floor as they approached.
#Arms.# Rockjaw growled in a low voice.
The expedition group shifted, about half of the twenty armed goblins moving to the back and watching the rear, leaving Hati and Rockjaw to face their front as the rest watched their sides. The seven unarmed explorers were shifted to the centre of the group, now standing beside Harry and herself. Remus too stepped forward, pausing right behind Hati.
"Easy there." He said to his patronus as it began to growl at the opening, hackles raised.
Hermione began to see what had set off the patronuses. Most of the carved diversions in the stone were at well-lit crossroads. They were, after all, major roads between goblin cities and interests deeper into the earth.
However, this one seemed duller than it should. The opening itself seemed cloaked in shadow that did not belong. And there was a cool breeze coming from inside. Before her very eyes, the shadows began to move.
Without waiting for the command, both felines leapt through the air and tackled the nearest shadow to the ground, slashing at the cloaked figure as they went. The now familiar sound of dying Dementors filled the tunnels, but the design of the Vregr showed some of its purpose as the sound did not echo as one would expect in such a solid stone construction.
That made Hermione reconsider how far away the mining crew might actually be, but she quickly shook away the thought and focused on directing Dawn. Harry was beside her, using his outstretched hand to guide Kitty as the massive beast took two Dementors to the floor, pinning one with its massive left paw while its right slashed the other to shreds beneath its enormous weight.
Dawn lunged upwards and pounced off the wall, taking another out of mid-air and battering it hard against the far wall of the much narrower passage. She shook the screeching monster until it fell silent and turned to dash at another.
Several of the shadows had exited the tunnel now that Kitty and Dawn were preoccupied and attempted to surge forward at the large group of food so close. Hati growled and yelped, holding them at bay for the moment. Maintaining an invisible wall of repulsion a few metres across which the Dementors seemed unable to pass.
Rockjaw pulled a large pike from his bag and Hermione was amazed at the sheer length of the weapon. It reached far past Hati and with a powerful swing, the thick goblin cleaved the outstretched hand of the nearest Dementor from its body.
The monster roared a horrid hissing sound as it reared back in response. The scabbed and scaly hand fell to the floor and twitched a few times before it fell completely still.
But the mistake had been made. These opportunists had revealed themselves to Harry and herself, and as a result, Kitty and Dawn pounced on them from behind, bringing them down and destroying them on the ground right in front of the group. The death screams were even more horrifying so close up, but they did not last for long.
When they had finished with their immediate prey, the two cats turned and leapt back into the passage and gradually hunted down the last couple of shadows as they tried to flee. In the end, only one of the near dozen that had tried to attack out of the side path had survived.
Kitty looked forlornly at Harry as he gestured for her to return. As if the mighty patronus wanted nothing more than to hunt the fleeing beast to the ends of the Earth.
"Kitty, heel." He said forcefully and the mighty cat sagged and slowly slunk back over to the group.
With the adrenaline of their first encounter dissipating, Hermione felt a giggle pull free from her chest and before long, the entire expedition was laughing along with her. The armed guards soon began to beat their chests in triumph and several moved to prod and poke at the now-deceased Dementor bodies on the floor of the massive tunnel.
#Until now, I had not believed it to be true.# Gekvir murmured, kicking the nearest body. #You two are true warriors.#
Hermione took a moment to control herself and quiet her laughter before she replied. #Thank you. Your weapons are formidable as well.#
Gekvir smiled as the goblin troops began dissecting the Dementor corpses.
Hermione tried her best not to baulk at the sight, but couldn't help but cover her nose at the smell that began to come from the dismembered bodies.
#Er, why are they doing that?# Harry asked, also repulsed at the sight. #You don't eat them do you?#
Gekvir and Rockjaw chuckled at the question.
#No. They're just as disgusting as food as they are as creatures. We use them as part of the punishment in the pits.# Gekvir explained.
Rockjaw smirked viciously before he continued. #The scent of the flesh keeps the Dementors away as if the pits themselves don't do that already. But the longer one works in the pits, the more that flesh starts to look mighty tasty.#
Hermione had studied the goblins extensively over their time interacting with the culture, but she had never found any mention of these pits in any of the books she had dug through. Thankfully, for her curiosity, Harry asked the obvious question.
#What are the pits?#
The grin on Rockjaw's face had Hermione worried that this information would be like that in the soul magic books of the Black Library. Something that she could not unlearn once she had heard it.
#The pits are located in the Deep Under, where the finest and rarest bounty of the earth can be found. The most precious gemstones, the minerals used to forge goblin steel.# Rockjaw pointed at the barely visible chain around her neck holding her portkey in place. #The lowest layers of the crust, down where the fumes are noxious and the heat is unbearable. Even these monsters rarely venture so deep. To be sent there, one must earn the Descent.#
Harry seemed extremely curious now. #What is the Descent?#
Every goblin in the crossroad chuckled in a sinister manner.
#The Descent is a punishment.# Gekvir noted. #For those whose crimes threaten the Nation but do not warrant a clean death. Only worthy deeds warrant a worthy death. Those few heroes that instigated your 'rebellions' for instance.#
Rockjaw nodded along before taking up the explanation. #The criminal is usually treated to an additional physical tax commensurate with their crime. And then they are sent into those mines. They work until their discoveries for the Nation balance their crime. No one has ever successfully returned from being sentenced to the Descent.#
Hermione could now recall hearing of this mysterious punishment once before, though she had not realised that was what it was at the time. Lurlor had mentioned that it had been the fate of Gugkoff for his interference in the portkey testing. At the time, Hermione had simply believed it meant the goblin had been sent further below the floors in which they were doing the tests.
Which, in a manner, was entirely correct. Just much further than she had expected.
#Never?# Harry asked, and Hermione shuddered at his continuing curiosity.
#Never.# Rockjaw said with a vicious smile. #Most who have been sent to this fate are forgotten by goblin history. The pits are the most dangerous place in the Goblin Nation. You do not want to visit them.#
The conversation had fully driven the adrenaline out of Hermione's system. The joy with which their guides and guards spoke of the punishment helped to clarify the differences between goblins and humans. While they could certainly be friendly, they would never truly see eye to eye on some matters.
Although, she considered the horrid prison to which the Ministry had been sending their own prisoners for years. No matter their crime, everyone who broke magical law in Britain had been sent to Azkaban for the past few centuries. Only their placement height-wise in the now broken tower and the length of their sentence varied.
She glanced up to Remus, to see what his impression of the conversation had been only to find herself suppressing laughter instead.
The elder man looked completely confused, and Hermione recalled that none of the adults in the family had mastered their level of understanding of Rhovak. At best, Remus had gotten a handful of words out of that entire conversation.
Hermione did not think explaining it for him would be a good idea.
ϟ
Friday, 18th August 1995.
Ragnok flicked quietly through the reports that were being brought to him.
Very little of what was being found in the vaults was a surprise. When you had lived in banking as long as he had, you tended to see the same things over and over. That was one of the reasons he enjoyed the chaos that Potter stirred up. Something different was always a welcome relief to the usual monotony of the role.
The Death Eaters, however, clung to the same old tropes again and again. Piles of gold, silver and bronze made up the bulk of the vaults, exactly as expected. So often it was the rich that resisted change so fervently. Lest that change diminish profits. It was a disease of the mind that even goblins were not immune to. Many had been sent below for such avarice. Some as a result of this very audit.
A few of the vaults also contained large quantities of family heirlooms, many of which Ragnok wished the goblins could reclaim as per their custom. Humans seemed to believe that when they bought something from goblin worksmiths, that they owned it and could do with it as they pleased. The Nation had fought two rebellions in the distant past trying to change this narrow viewpoint. The item belonged to the family of the artisan that crafted it and the human merely purchased a period of usage.
Even the portkeys now worn by the young Harry and his mate would return to their creator once the boy was free of the need for them. And in that one instance, Ragnok believed he may actually see a human abide by their rules for such items.
He smiled as he read over yet another report of a vault containing undeclared dark magic. As had been mentioned at their meeting, Gringotts did not forbid the storage of such items within their walls. They did charge more for the privilege though. Dark Magic upset the humans in the Ministry, so Gringotts charged more to house such troublesome items.
The usage of a dark artefact within the bank though, that would see the fool lose at least their arm, if not their head. Though that was often the same with any kind of magic being cast on goblinkind by humans within their territory.
Ragnok cracked his neck as he leaned back, tossing the most recent report on his desk. Unfortunately, these audits were taking longer than he had hoped.
While they checked these vaults for intruders on a regular basis, they had not audited so many in a very long time. It seems that the humans had begun storing increasing amounts of their goods within their vaults. And it was a slow process checking every single item in a vault containing a million objects. Be they knuts or books. Jewellery or furniture.
There was also the need to inspect the contents of any containers in the vault as well. While goblin magic allowed them to do this without damaging or opening the container, it took a short ritual to accomplish. One that had been developed almost a millennia ago for inspecting the containers in tombs without prodding the curses that were so often present on such things. Which many of the containers in the Death Eater vaults also bore.
So far, there had only been one injury. And that was due to the goblin's inexperience. They had learned a valuable lesson about heeding their Master's instructions and would continue the work with half of the digits and no claws on their right hand. The proper fine had been levied to Yaxley's vault for the damage, as per the rental agreement. Such dangerous enchantments were meant to be declared before storage within Gringotts.
Ragnok grabbed his goblet and drank deep of the fungal wine. It came from the Deep Under, not far from the pits themselves. The noxious fumes gave the wine a unique flavour, and only those who had endured many poisoning attempts in their lives could drink it. Ragnok had been at the top of the Under of London for a long time, and such a role was dangerous to hold. But those prior attempts had granted him the ability to taste such a potent mixture, so were worth it in his eyes.
If goblins weren't trying to kill him from time to time, he wasn't doing the job properly.
He smiled as he took another sip before laying the goblet back down and picking up the next report. This one had only been brought in an hour ago. The Malfoy Vault.
This should be interesting. And fortuitous timing to audit it, given that the Malfoy wills would now come into effect. Whenever their counsel chose to come forth and enact them. The entire family now lay dead. Further proof of why Ragnok was glad he had blocked the bastard Albus and the Ministry all those years ago.
Potter was reshaping the human magical world without even trying.
Ragnok was very happy to be alive right now. Times like these were far too rare.
ϟ
Sunday, 20th August 1995.
Sirius popped into place in the library, Harry releasing his hand almost immediately and heading for his usual chair.
Travelling back to the Manor from the Vregr Dehur was the first time that he ever felt anything when popping with Harry. He was unsure if it was the distance, the depth, or simply a level of exhaustion on Harry's part. Hermione too looked extremely tired after their day's work.
Two hundred and sixteen Dementors had fallen to the cats since they began their work on Thursday. The world was already a far brighter place than it had been.
The argument that had erupted once the children had informed everyone of the bargain had been fairly epic. Though Sirius had remained mostly quiet throughout. He adored Harry and Hermione and would do anything to protect the pair. But he had to admit, this was a task they were uniquely suited to carry out. Richard and Natalie had been particularly vocal in their resistance, having only the vague feeling of what a Dementor was from the meeting in Dumbledore's office. A sensation they never wanted to feel again. Something Sirius definitely understood.
Yet, Harry had faced Dementors at least five times now, and every single time he did, Dementors died. Sirius had to admit, the lad was certainly stacking the wins in his favour there.
"Progress?" Dorea queried as the two kids dumped themselves into their chair and Sirius finally followed suit, sitting in his own comfortable chair. Most of the others were not present this evening. Though it was late on a weekend, they never expected everyone to hang about all day waiting for their return.
"Good," Hermione replied, snuggling up to Harry. "Another three dozen are gone. One group was attempting to attack one of the mining troupes." She brightened for a moment and Sirius couldn't help but smile at the familiar face of Hermione having learned something new. "We're learning so much about goblin culture. It is far more complex than the books would have you believe."
Harry chuckled at his girlfriend and pressed a kiss to her bushy hair, tied up out of the way with a thick blue ribbon he had gifted her for Christmas a few years before.
"It is fascinating. We're seeing places humans didn't even know existed before." Harry noted. "It is no wonder that people so often get on their bad side. We know almost nothing about how their culture works. Simply pressing our own ideals onto them and wondering why they don't fit. It's idiotic."
Sirius smiled at the kids. "It has been eye-opening." He added.
"And you? How are you faring dear?" Dorea asked, directing the question at Sirius. Like a proper concerned mother.
Today had been his first time in the Vregr. His first time intentionally putting himself in the path of the monsters that kept him company for seven long years. His quick and unscheduled return to Azkaban had been rough, but somehow, today wasn't as bad as he had expected.
"Good." He replied, noting as he glanced up that all three of them were looking at him with concern. Something he was supposed to feel for them, not the other way around. "It is quite cathartic. Not that I'm the one killing them."
"You keep them at bay so that we can," Harry replied. "We could not do this without you Sirius."
They both smiled widely. Sirius knew that Harry truly meant it. He had finally settled into the family after so long wondering when the illusion would break. While he had enjoyed his time living here since he was set free, he hadn't truly embraced it until after that meeting in Dumbledore's office.
"That's my job." He replied simply.
"Oh, you're finally back," Lily noted as she entered the large painting in the library, having been summoned by the talking. "We were a little worried."
"Your parents headed home about an hour ago, Hermione," James added, joining them. "It was getting kind of late."
"I'll go let them know we're alright." Hermione leaned down and gave Harry a soft kiss. "I'll be back soon."
The girl vanished from Harry's lap and the boy looked sad for a moment before he centred himself and looked up at his family. "Don't." He warned softly, noticing the look on Sirius's face.
"What? It's just been so very long since you've had to go to bed alone." Sirius joked.
Sirius could honestly not recall the last time that those two had slept apart. Hermione had even surrendered 'her' room in the Manor as a bad joke. They now shared Harry's room as if they were already married. Which, he supposed, they already were given their bond. The pair would be together for the rest of their lives. Marriage would only note that reality on paper for the stodgy twats at the Ministry.
"Wanna sleep in the canopy again?" Harry warned a little more heat than usual in the gentle jibe.
The pair were truly uncomfortable when apart these days. And it was both sweet and a little saddening for Sirius to see. It was cute to see them interact, but their dependence on one another could be a weakness to exploit as well. Not that anyone would have any luck trying to keep one of them away from the other. Harry had cemented that lesson into his very soul after the Second Task.
And every single member of the Family would be right beside him hunting whoever was dumb enough to try. Sirius in particular wanted to make sure his godson never looked that distraught ever again. He just raised his hands defensively.
"How's the crew?" James asked, redirecting the brief distraction back to Harry's new task.
"They are good. Remus and Sirius definitely need to work on their Rhovak though."
"Oh come on. You know it's harder to learn a new language as an adult." Sirius moaned.
"Well," Lily smirked, "with how childishly you behave, it should be easy then."
Harry and James both laughed at his expense, but Dorea gave her daughter-in-law a chiding look.
"Now now, leave Sirius be. My boy learns his own way, don't you dear."
Sirius felt the same swell of love for the old woman who had taken him truly into her family. He never got tired of her claiming him as her own.
"Damn right." He replied. "I'll get the hang of it. Just you watch."
Harry shook his head at the adults. "That is why we are late tonight. We had to help that mining crew rebuild their campsite. The expedition will stay there tonight. I am somewhat tempted to stay down there though, just for one night. To see what it is like."
"I doubt it would be much different," Lily said. "That far underground, nocturnal isn't really a thing. Troglobites live by their own rules."
"I know," Harry replied. "Even the rest of the expedition doesn't seem to need to sleep as we do. They're used to being down there. A lot of this is to accommodate us 'weak humans'." He said with a laugh.
"Speaking of, you should probably go and get some rest, Harry," Dorea noted.
The lad immediately yawned powerfully, as if Dorea had summoned it out of him by the mere mention of sleep.
"Fine. I love you all." Harry said, giving them a light wave as he stood.
He stopped beside Sirius on the way to the door. "Thanks for helping today," Harry said, leaning in and giving him a firm hug.
Sirius patted the boy's back as he drew just as much comfort from Harry as the lad did from him. "Always."
Harry slowly walked from the room and all four adults watched him leave in silence. Sirius would never forgive himself for missing so much of Harry's childhood, but what he had been present for was every bit as fun and rewarding as he had hoped it would be.
It was several moments of silence before Lily spoke up again. "Is he being honest with us?"
Sirius smirked and turned back to look at the painting. "Course he is. It's pretty incredible down there. I'll admit, I never knew the goblins had it in them. The Vregr are something else to see."
"But are they safe?" Dorea enquired.
Sirius gave the idea a bit of thought. It really depended on what a person's definition of safe was. "Yes. And no." He eventually replied. "I think they are safe. Their own skill alone makes them so. And Gekvir's lads are tough. They give the Dementors as good as they get. But there are other dangers besides the Dementors down there."
"Should we find a way to get them out of there?" James asked, looking at him closely as if studying his response.
Sirius sighed at the question. Most of his time as Harry's godfather had been a bunch of fun and games. Remus handled the thinking portion of raising and teaching the two. Sirius was mostly there as extra hands for the spells, or to show Harry how to take after his father and cause a little mischief. It was not often that he was called on to behave like a real adult and assess the danger to his little boy.
"I don't think that you can." He finally said. He recalled the flare of magic that had occurred during that meeting. It was why he had argued for the pair in the fight that had occurred here the evening after. The Grangers had initially been livid at the idea of their kids intentionally seeking out those vile beasts as payment. "They made a pact with the Goblin Nation. Regardless of what we might say or do, they will carry out their side of it. And I think they are enjoying it."
He thought about how pleased the two had been when the largest group of Dementors they had encountered today lay in a pile on the floor of the caves. Harry was proud of the work they were doing.
Were it solely up to him, Sirius would have kept them from the work for another few years at least. To allow them to finish enjoying their childhoods before heading into work of that nature. But he had to admit, Harry was far more mature than he or James were at fifteen.
He even felt the smallest hint of remorse for Snivellous as Sirius recalled how James had ripped into him for telling the greasy git how to bypass the Willow. Apparently, their forever enemy had been moron enough to try and use the passage on a full moon.
"You're saying that they won't listen to us, even if we insist?" Dorea asked.
"I don't think that you should ask." He replied. "It's good work. Most jobs include a little danger, and ridding the world of Dementors is a noble goal. I think they like it. And I think they're both mature enough to make decisions about what they want to do with their lives. As much as we still like to think of them both as kids."
James gave a scoffing laugh. "Yeah, that is true. I'd barely considered what I wanted to do with my life by eighteen."
"Knocking me up, apparently." Lily joked, leaning into her husband.
"Can you blame me?" James replied, waggling his eyebrows.
Lily gazed up at him and Sirius well recognized that look. "No." She said softly as she pulled him into a kiss.
Sirius and Dorea both saw the writing on that wall and she simply waved at him as she departed the large frame.
As much as Sirius loved James as his brother, he was not about to sit here and watch the man shag his wife. He stood and waved at the amorous pair before he followed the path Harry had taken before him.
Like Hermione, Sirius owned a room in this massive house that was his own. And yet, he had barely used it since rejoining the family here. He paused at the door to the boy's room, making sure similar noises to the ones he had been fleeing were not present inside. All he could hear was soft breathing and Sirius entered the room.
A glance at the bed brought back his smile. As expected, Harry was tucked under the covers, his face buried in a bushy head of hair that belonged to the girl wrapped in his arms. Clearly, Hermione had finished saying goodnight to her parents and returned. The two were already fast asleep.
Using powerful magic like the patronus was extremely draining. Sirius too felt an overwhelming sense of weariness hit him at the sight and he stretched before he turned into Padfoot and padded over to the permanent dog bed in the room.
It had been shifted off the end of the bed itself and down between the fireplace and the window.
Padfoot turned three times on the bed, as he did every night before settling in, and he lay down, facing the bed.
Good night, he thought at the pair before he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.