The Family that Chooses You

Chapter 105: Silence and Light

Harry stepped through the Floo, shaking of ash and soot.  "Sirius?" he called into the quiet.  The sitting room in Grimmauld looked the same.  Much cleaner than when they first came of course, but it had an air of stillness to it, as if it had not been used in some time.  Harry pulled his trunk to the side, collecting the soot together and vanishing it.

"Sirius?" he called again, growing slightly worried.  When he arrived at the platform, Sirius was not there, nor was Andromeda or Tonks.  He had waited for a few moments, saying goodbye to his friends as they left, then left via the Floo they recently installed at the platform.

As he was leaving the room, he saw a folded piece of parchment sitting on the table by the couch with his name on it.  He opened it and started to read, feeling better at seeing Sirius' oddly neat script.

Hey Harry!

If you're reading this, it means I'm not back yet.  I decided to go off on a trip.  Halloween really messed with me and I had to get out, get my thoughts in order and the like.  Don't worry, I'm not doing anything dangerous or illegal, as far as I know anyways.  Just wanted to get away.

I should be back before Christmas but if not, Happy Christmas!  Your gift will appear then so don't try to sneak around and look for it.  I also made sure the house was stocked full of whatever you need and there's extra money in my study desk.  Just tap the top drawer and say my nickname in case anyone else is reading this.

If I'm not back by Christmas, I should be back before you head back to school.  Don't worry about me.  Take care of the home, no wild parties, and enjoy yourself.

Sirius

Harry blinked at the letter.  It certainly sounded like Sirius, and he was not worried per se.  However, he wished Sirius had warned him before coming back to Grimmauld.  Harry was hoping to talk to Sirius about a few things, he had sent a letter saying so, but maybe Sirius did not get it until after he left.

He did not begrudge Sirius leaving for a trip.  The man had lost a large chunk of his life in Azkaban, and he truly needed the freedom and opportunity to do anything he wanted.  Still, Harry had a strange disquieting feeling inside of him.

He shook his head and snorted.  "I don't have anything to be upset over," he muttered out loud, his words echoing in the stillness.  He had a large home available to him.  He was warm and comfortable.  He had plenty of food and freedom.  After so many holidays where he had none of that, this was paradise comparatively.

The next few days passed oddly.  Harry lost sense of time here and there.  He had to check a clock often because sometimes it felt like hours have passed when barely minutes had, and others he looked outside and was shocked to see a drastic change in sunlight or lack thereof.  He ate when he wanted to, took time making simple things to eat.  He did all his homework the first day and put a big dent into his O.W.L.s studying.

One of the largest rooms was converted into a home gym so he spent time working out, eager to rebuild his physical health and stay on track for Quidditch.  He reviewed procedures in his medical guide.  He practiced a few spells, especially ones he thought that would be on the practical portion of his tests.

He spent more time on the rooftop garden.  After a while the house was feeling tight around him, the walls pressing in.  The ever-prevalent stillness was gnawing at him and he wondered at that.  It had been a long time since stillness bothered him.  He used to spend ages in absolute silence.  "Getting friends must have changed that," he said to no one.

A few times he thought about sending a message to someone, or calling via the Floo but he always held back.  He did not want to interrupt anyone else's holiday and all things considered, he was doing fine.  He was healthy, warm, full.  Just alone.