The news that Sirius and Kalina were to be parents again made for a nice distraction for Harry. For a time it felt great to just lean back and be a normal teenager. Dobby made dinner while Harry and Remus drank tea and discussed Harry's end of year exams. Cassi sat in a bouncy chair cheerfully trying to place her foot into her mouth along with the treat Dobby had given 'Little Miss'. (Harry had taken some pictures for future blackmail.) Sirius and Kalina had stopped fighting and some irritatingly familiar noises were now coming from upstairs.
"And she wonders how she got pregnant again," Harry murmured before casting a Silencing Charm at the ceiling. Cassi gurgled in seeming amusement but that might have been gas.
Harry's brief sense of normal family life was interrupted by the arrival of a large owl bearing the livery harness with the Ministry of Magic's seal prominent on the bird's chest. The owl glared at Harry until the boy finally stood up and removed the heavy letter attached to the bird's leg. As Harry sat back into his chair the owl left without waiting for any type of answer.
Harry opened the letter and read it in silence. Remus was getting nervous as Harry's body language did not give any sense of if the letter was good news or bad.
"Harry? What is it?" the werewolf Marauder asked.
"It's a summons," Harry answered absently. Remus waited a moment more for Harry to elaborate. Then just as he was about to speak, Harry looked up.
"The Wizengamot is calling a session to discuss what happened that night. Apparently Madam Bones and the Unspeakables are presenting their findings and the Wizengamot is requiring that I be there as a primary witness to answer any of their questions directly."
"That doesn't sound too bad," Remus replied in a cautious tone. Harry tossed the letter onto the table with a dismissive snort.
"Have you ever heard of the Wizengamot ever doing something similar? Having the witness there to answer questions? Five galleons this gets used to play politics to divert attention to what actually happened. Look at the way that Umbridge woman kept trying to ignore Voldemort's return and the Death Eaters to focus on tracking down the 'dark creature' that attacked those 'upstanding purebloods'. No, Remus, this has the feel of a snitch hunt and I'm the bloody snitch!"
"You sounded so much like Charlus, your grandfather, just then," Sirus commented from the door. Harry and Remus turned in surprise as they hadn't heard him approach even with their superior hearing.
"You must have put up a Silencing Charm," Sirius commented in an innocent tone. "I have no idea why. Hello my little princess!" The last was said in that silly tone all new parents make talking to their newborns. For her part, Cassi gurgled happily at her daddy's return.
"What were you saying about my grandfather?" Harry asked.
"Charlus was an Auror for thirty years. He retired as Head Auror and set himself in a legal practice a few years before James was born. Smuthers, Potter and Associates did a good business in criminal and contract law, particularly between the magical and muggle worlds." Sirius glanced over at Harry. "Alvin Nott was an associate and your grandfather's assistant. When Charlus retired, Alvin was part of the group that bought him out." Harry nodded as he remembered the elder Nott's words in the graveyard. "Anyway, Charlus was always good at interrupting the currents of the Wizengamot."
Remus picked up the letter. "You knew about this?"
"Only when that bloody bird interrupted the warm fuzzies when we were done."
"Yes, that bird was rather rude," Kalina agreed as she swept into the kitchen. She was wearing only a very short Victoria Secret robe and her hair was a dishevelled mess. Padfoot grinned proudly. It was only through experience and sheer willpower that he ignored the scantily clad Veela and focused on the matter at hand.
"I think I am going to need some new robes," Harry commented absently.
"What's that, pup?" Sirius asked with a hint of disbelief. Harry responded with the irritated eye roll all teenagers know and perfect.
"Riddles people in the Wizengamot are going to go after the primary witness - me. They can't do too much about the physical evidence except argue with the conclusions. Since my story forms the basis of those conclusions that means they have to make me look bad. Since humans judge a lot on appearance and first impressions - not matter what they say - it means I have to look my best at this hearing."
"Sounds like something my grandfather, Acturus, would have said," Sirius grumped. "But I suppose you're right. Still sounds like something a Slytherin would say."
Harry smiled innocently over at his godfather. "How did you know that is where the Hat wanted to put me? He would have too if not for the fear of the Beast killing off half the House in the first week."
Sirius looked shocked at the idea of Harry being in Slytherin but Remus not so much. Instead he asked, "The Hat thought you were a danger to the Slytherin students?" Harry smiled back beatifically.
"Hat figured the nibblers from the Dark families would try something because of the whole Boy-Who-Lived shite. He reckoned eventually I'd have to release the Beast simply out of self-preservation. So I asked for Gryffindor instead. Mostly because of having McGonagall and Flitwick take me to Diagon Alley. I liked them both but I knew the Ravenclaw drive to study would drive me barmy in no time. Flitwick is actually my favourite professor though."
"He is rather charming," Sirius absently agreed as he tried to process what Harry had just revealed.
"You know, I am not sure if that was a deliberate pun or if it is so ingrained now his mouth just moves without any input from his brain," Remus commented seeing his oldest friend's blank expression.
"Oh, trust me. His mouth is very talented, particularly his tongue," Kalina purred. Harry and Remus simultaneously tried to turn green and blush at the blatant innuendo.
Harry was staggering out of the room making retching noises when Sirius blinked and looked around. "What did I miss?" he asked.
...
Want to read ahead. Then Join my Pa*treon for the mass release of 60+ chapters that has happened.
Even Free members can enjoy 2+ advanced chapters FOR FREE.
Link: p*atreon.com/Divine_Quill (Remove the *)
Join Right Now