The Bonds of Spirit are stronger than the Bonds of Blood

Chapter Twenty Two

The Marauders boarded the train, excited to head home. Finding their usual compartment empty, they quickly set their bags down and took their usual seats. Remus sat next to the window, across from Sirius who had claimed the other window, while Peter sat next to Remus and James next to Sirius. Kicking his feet up, Sirius said "So, what are your plans for the summer Moony?" Remus thought about it and said "Hopefully I'll be able to have a calm summer. But I'm visiting you and Prongs for the last two weeks, so that's rather unlikely!" He gave the pair a cheeky grin as they laughed. James spoke up "Can't wait to have you with us Moony! We'll have a proper adventure this summer!" Then he turned to Peter and said "What about you Wormtail?" Peter thought on it a moment and said "I'll likely just spend a quiet summer at home, unless I can convince my mother to let me visit you guys when Moony joins you!" He grinned at the thought. Since he was away at Hogwarts most of the year, staying to spend Christmas with his friends, his mother liked to have him stay home for most of the summer. If he behaved for most of the summer, he could convince her to let him stay with his friends for a few weeks. She usually let him stay with James for a week, two at the most, after some brief convincing. At those times they would be joined by Remus, joining them after the full moon had passed, and Sirius, who constantly snuck out of his family home to join James whenever possible. James nudged Sirius and said "Are you ready for the best summer ever, Padfoot?" Sirius smirked and said "Padfoot and Prongs together for a whole summer! Your neighbours are going to regret living next door!" He laughed. He knew the two of them wouldn't really get up to too much trouble, after all both loved James' parents. They were amazing! Sirius remembered the first time he had met them. He was eleven. It was the summer after their first year. Sirius had run away from home after yet another screaming match with his parents, who kept insisting he was nothing but a disappointment for being sorted into Gryffindor and making friends with non purebloods, and he had nowhere else to go. He wandered around until he managed to catch a ride on the Knight Bus. He was confused when a purple double-decker bus appeared out of nowhere! But he paid the toll and rode on that wild bus until he made it to James' hometown. Shakily stepping out of the bus, he wandered through the town until he stumbled across the house that James had showed him in a picture. It was just as beautiful as Sirius had thought it would be! Walking up the front steps, Sirius hesitantly knocked on the front door. It was the middle of the night, so he fully expected no one would answer. But just as he turned around to look for a place to sleep, he heard steps approaching the door. He turned just as the door opened and came face to face with a beautiful older woman.

He looked up at her in awe, as she looked down at him confused. Shaking his head he said, in a quiet voice "Ummm Sorry to bother you, but is James home?" Mrs. Potter looked confused, before giving him a sympathetic smile, saying "Come on in dear, James is in his room right now." After ushering the small boy inside, she called up the stairs. "James! You have a visitor!" An older man peaked his head out of another room, what appeared to be the kitchen, with a cup of delicious smelling tea in hand. He gave a kindly smile and said "Oh? Who might you be, young man?" Sirius struck out his hand lazily, barely following the manners that were so forcibly drilled into his mind, and said "I'm Sirius Black. Nice to meet you sir." The man laughed, shook his hand and said "Ah, so you are the infamous Sirius Black! James has been talking about you since you two became friends! Welcome to our home!" Still smiling kindly, he returned to the kitchen, bringing out a second cup of tea and some biscuits. Sirius sat down on the couch, directed to by James' parents, and slowly drank the tea. It was a black tea, and perfect for the calm summer evening. When he reached for a second biscuit, he heard rushed steps down the stairs. Turning, he came face to face with a clearly tired and very surprised James. He was in pyjamas with golden snitches darting about, his hair even messier than usual. "Sirius?!" He shouted, before rushing over to hug his friend. Sirius happily hugged his friend back, glad to have found a warm welcome from not only his friend but his friend's parents. Curious, James asked "What are you doing here? It's really late!" Sirius looked down and said "You remember how you said I could come here anytime it got too difficult at home? ... Well, here I am!" He laughed embarrassedly, rubbed the back of his head nervously and said "I can stay here, right?" James' mother spoke up first. "Of course you can stay here, darling! Stay however long you like!" She turned her attention to James and said "James, dear, go grab a spare set of pyjamas for Sirius." James grinned and ran up the stairs. His father said "You just finish up your tea lad, and then it's off to bed with both you and James! Wouldn't want you two to sleep through the whole summer!" He laughed, ruffled Sirius' hair, and returned to the Kitchen to clean up. James' mother sat with Sirius as he relaxed with his tea, and told him where everything important in the house was. Once he was finished, she led him up to James' room, which was on the second floor, at the far corner of the house. Stepping inside the room, he found James excitedly moving about, a pair of pyjamas with black dogs on them in his arms. After changing, Sirius joined James in the large bed and the two shared a grin. James' mother spoke up from the door. "Good Night boys. See you in the morning!" The two chorused "Good Night!" and fell asleep fairly quickly.

From that point on, whenever Sirius couldn't stand being at home any longer, all he had to do was show up on the Potter's front step and he would be welcomed in. They had even gotten him his own bed and set it up in James' room. Growing so close to the older couple, Sirius had begun calling them Mum and Dad. The two had been surprised at first, but they were more than happy to have Sirius as their unofficial second son. Every holiday and birthday they would send him gifts, and they always invited him to spend time with them over the Christmas break, if he, James, Peter, and Remus decided to leave the castle. Sirius smiled at the memories and said "Moony, Wormtail, You two definitely have to join us! Mum and Dad are gonna have an end of summer party before we go shopping for next year's supplies!" Remus and Peter shared a grin before saying "Sounds great!" For the remainder of the train ride, the four made plans for their two weeks together at the end of summer. The made a list of all that they would do in Diagon Alley while getting supplies, and what they would do around James' hometown. They marked down the best places to hide out and continue their attempts to charm the map. They knew it would take months or even years for them to finish the map entirely, but they were not about to let the summer call a complete halt to their work if they could help it! They made a list of places and people to prank, including those that could be pranked in animagus form. They spoke about the dreams they had had, including Remus' particularly odd dream. In the dream, the four had become famous aurors, travelling the world in their little pack of four, hunting down dark wizards and witches with ease and efficiency. The four lived together, sharing a grand old house off in the country. During the full moon, though he still resented having to change form, he took it in stride because his best friends were right there with him. They'd run the country side in their animagus and werewolf forms, hunting in the pale moonlight. And when they had down time, they'd play Quidditch together in their magnificent back yard. The quartet smiled at the thought of such a time. All of them, all grown up, with their whole future ahead of them! Sirius sighed and said "That's our future! It's not gonna be just some dream, we're gonna make it a reality!" James nodded and said "Definitely! There's no way we can let that stay a dream!" Peter cheered along with them and Remus just smiled fondly at his friends. Their future decided, the Marauders stepped off the train and onto the platform at Kings Cross. Peter waved goodbye and ran off to meet his mother. Remus hugged Sirius and James, then walked off to meet up with his father. James and Sirius stepped over towards James' father and smiled. Having heard the good news via the letter, he took the boys' hands with a smile and swiftly apparated away. The trio landed on the front step of the house. After wiping their shoes off on the mat, the boys stepped inside and found themselves greeted by tea and James' mother. With a smile she said "Welcome Home!"

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