Of Monsters, Of Men

Chapter 33

The following afternoon, after Tom and Harry had finished their session with Moody, Sirius Black approached Harry. He looked remarkably different now that he'd showered and his previously wild mess of hair had been tamed and neatly combed.

"Harry, do you think it'd be alright if I talked to you alone?" Black asked tentatively.

Harry felt a nervous sort of anticipation build in his stomach. "Yes, I'd be alright with that." He nodded at Tom. "I'll meet you upstairs later, Tom."

Tom gazed neutrally at Sirius Black and turned away, walking back into the house without saying another word.

"What did you want to talk about?" Harry asked, a bit of curiosity leaking into his voice.

Black cleared his throat, suddenly seeming bashful. "I wanted to ask whether I could get to know you better." He hesitated before saying, "You're my godson, Harry."

Harry nodded. "That's fine with me."

Why not?

Black smiled, but it was a shaky smile. "Is there anything you want to know in particular? About Lily and James? And I was hoping I could learn more about your life too."

Harry shrugged, dropping his eyes to the ground as he crossed his arms. "I didn't really think that much about my parents growing up in the orphanage. I knew that my parents had died in a house fire. Sometimes I wondered about what it'd be like to have a family, but that was more wistful thinking on my end." He cracked an apologetic smile. "Sorry."

Not a very satisfying response, I know.

Black's eyes unfocused. "Merlin, I should have been there for you," he whispered, his voice hoarse.

"It was hard for everyone," Harry said carefully. "I don't blame you for what happened."

"That's... good to hear." Black swallowed. "How was the orphanage?"

"Wool's was a harsh environment for two wizards in a muggle space. Especially Tom, since he made a name for himself with his magic and mannerisms. The other orphans were scared of him. But if it weren't for the orphanage, I doubt I would've become friends with him."

"You weren't scared of him?" Black asked critically, his gaze becoming sharper, some of the clouded haze lifting from his vision.

Harry scratched the back of his head. "Tom and I had always had an understanding with each other. I never feared him."

Black grimaced. "Tom is... From what I've seen, Tom is very similar to the purebloods I've grown up with."

"We did what we had to do to survive," Harry said, feeling a little defensive. He took a deep breath before saying, "That included adopting pureblood mannerisms once entering the Wizarding World. Tom and I weren't liked by the rest of the orphans. We were determined to not let that happen at Hogwarts, but we were sorted in Slytherin."

Black's lips twisted. "We're two sides of the same coin, in a sense. I was the first and only Black sorted into Gryffindor, while you clearly weren't purebloods and were still sorted in Slytherin."

"It's what Tom wanted." Seeing the look on Black's face, Harry added, "I wanted it too. I wasn't ever going to leave Tom."

Hesitating, Black's eyes searched Harry's for a moment. "Do you have other friends at Hogwarts?"

Brightening considerably, Harry beamed and nodded. "Of course. I'm the closest to the FiGS board—Lawrence, Nina, Polly, and Myrtle. I didn't have many friends in Slytherin," he said.

Black grimaced. "Partnerships and acquaintanceships and all that bullshit. I thought it was stupid when I was growing up, and I still think it is."

"Tom and I had developed a friendship with Alphard Black, but that was before we pivoted away from Slytherin." He didn't mention how Avery owed him a life debt and swore an exclusive vow of fealty—that was too important to spill to Black.