Shooting Star

Chapter Fifty-Eight

There was a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher again. Harry hated her. Her name was Dolores Umbridge, and she worked at the Ministry.
"She had Harry in detention, writing 'I must not tell lies' with a magic pen, and it carved it into his hand." Hermione had told me.
Harry said she wasn't teaching them anything, nothing hands-on. Sirius was pissed, and Remus and I were irritated.
"This is bullshit." Sirius was saying irritably.
"I know."
Sirius let the new Order of Phoenix use Grimmauld Place as their headquarters, so we were there half the time, but then Harry and his friends went to the Ministry--the Department of Mysteries, of all things!--and a bunch of us went to their rescue.
I wanted to fucking kill Bellatrix Lestrange, but then I saw Sirius punch Lucius Malfoy in the face and started laughing, and ended up just hexing her instead. But then she almost killed Sirius, but Remus pulled him away from the veil.
"Harry Potter, what the hell was that?!" I half shrieked when we got out. "Oh, don't you two walk away. Get back here." I pointed at Ron and Hermione.
"Mrs. Black, it was Voldemort--" Hermione began.
"I know. I saw." I pressed my fingers to my temples. Sirius came beside me and put his arm around me. "You aren't off the bloody hook either! You almost died!"
"But I didn't." He shrugged.
"Yeah, because I saved your arse. Again." Remus said.
"Might I add that you also destroyed a prophecy?" I continued.
"I'm sorry, Mum." Harry said quietly.
"It's all right, James--" Sirius said, and cut off. "I'm sorry." He said immediately. "I'll see you around, kid. Bye Hermione, Ron." He said, and turned and walked away.
Remus followed, leaving me to fight my tears and get the kids back to Hogwarts.
"You aren't to leave this school." I said pointedly to all of them. "Whatever you do, don't leave the grounds."
They all nodded.
"Is Dad all right?" Harry asked as he hugged me.
"Yeah, I'm sure Sirius is--"
"You can call yourselves my parents, you know." He interrupted. "You are my parents. You've raised me, and you're my bloody parents."
I opened my mouth to respond, completely unsure of what I was going to say.
"I know you feel like you have some obligation to James and Lily. I know they're my biological parents, all right? But you and Dad are my bloody parents, all right? Unless you don't want to--"
"Harry." Hermione said quietly.
"No, Hermione. You have your parents. I do too, but they won't even call themselves that."
"I'm sorry, Harry." I said quietly as Hermione and Ginny led everyone away from us. "I thought we were doing what was right..." My eyes burned with tears.
"Well, you weren't. Please, Mum. Would you please just call yourself that?" He looked away.
"Yes, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Harry. We didn't mean to hurt you--"
"I love you, Mum." He hugged me again.
"I love you too, Harry. S--Your father does too." I hugged him tightly.
"Thank you." He said quietly.
"Let me see your hand, Harry." I said as I let him go.
"Who told you about that?" He asked as I grabbed his hand, just as Severus came around the corner.
"To class, Potter." Severus said sharply.
"Professor--"
"Class, Potter." He repeated.
Harry looked at me, and I shrugged. "He's the boss, love. Go on, get." I kissed his forehead. "I love you."
"I love you too." He said quietly, stalking away.
"Thank you." I told Severus.
"For what? Sending your son away?"
"Yes." I said, and broke down into tears.
He grabbed my hand and pulled me through the corridor and into an empty room. "What's wrong?" He asked.
"They went to the Department of Mysteries and destroyed a prophecy, and Voldemort was there, and Sirius called James--" I cut off when I called him James and started crying harder.
"I know. I told you all." He said.
I put my face in my hands, sobbing.
"... Do you want me to take you home?" He asked.
I stepped forward and hugged him, sobbing into his robe. "No. Not now. I can. I just need to calm down. I can't--"
"He's your husband, not your child." Severus said harshly.
"I don't care." I sucked in a breath and held it.
"Okay." I said after a moment. "I'm all right. Thank you." I stepped away.
"Do you want me to take you home?" He asked again.
"No, I can do it. Thank you. Don't you have a class to teach?"
"Yes, I'm sure they're waiting on me. But I want to take you home."
"I can--"
"You can't walk through these halls." He hissed. "Not by yourself. Umbridge is insane. I'm taking you."
He pulled me out and started walking quickly down the corridors, his hand on my arm.
There was a woman clad in all pink walking towards us. That's a lot of pink.
"She has kitten plates in her office." He hissed. "I told you you have to leave." Sev said loudly as he pulled me past her.
"Let me go!" I said to go along with it.
We got out of school grounds. Finally. "What the hell?" I asked.
"She's a fucking bitch." Sev said. "Are you ready?"
I nodded.
He took me home, and left before I could say thank you. I went inside cautiously, kind of afraid of how the boys would be.
"I'm sorry, Eliza." Sirius said when I walked in. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to call him James. I just--"
"Sh. It's all right. I did it too when I was talking to Severus."
I told them what had happened, but left out my little breakdown.
"It isn't fair." Sirius said softly.
"I know." Remus said. "It isn't. But Harry's right. You raised him."
"I know, just..." I said quietly.
"James and Lily wouldn't mind. We all know that." Remus said.
"I know." Sirius and I both said.
"Wait." I said as Remus was about to leave.
"What?" He turned back to me.
I stood and hugged him. "Thank you. For saving Sirius." I whispered.
"Yeah, 'course." He said nonchalantly. "What else am I good for?"
"He may not appreciate it, but I do."
"He does. He's got you and Harry to live for." He kissed my cheek and left.
Sirius sat on the couch, staring at the ground, his chin resting on his palm. I knelt in front of him, remembering all those times Remus had done this to me when I'd been upset when Sirius was in Azkaban. "Sirius?" I said gently.
He jumped a bit and turned to me. "Yeah?"
"Are you all right?"
"I called him James."
"He's just like him." I supplied. "Less arrogant, perhaps..." I smiled a bit.
"Come here." He tugged on my arm. I got up and sat beside him. "I just had a near death experience. You'd think you'd pay me more attention." He said, and gave me a little grin.