HP Drabble for DMS

[Dusty15]

A godfather-godson fic for DMS. Enjoy

Winter settled on London like a coating of icing on Mrs. Weasley’s famous bundt cake. Snow was caked on every possible surface and Jack Frost had come overnight, glazing the top of the snow with a sheet of solid ice that continued up onto the windows and hung off the branches of trees. And despite all the best warming charms that Remus Lupin could perform, all the fires that Arthur Weasley lit, all the windows that Molly Weasley repaired, and all the extra rugs that Nymphadora Tonks laid out and then proceeded to trip over, it was still damp and drafty at 12 Grimmauld Place.

Harry Potter rolled over under his thick duvet and snuggled further down under the bedclothes. He’d pulled on an extra jumper during the night and two thick pairs of woolen socks covered his toes. The bright winter sunshine pierced through the crack in the dusty old curtains of his room, but he couldn’t will himself out of bed. Christmas had come and gone, full of more dramatics than Harry cared to think about. Mr. Weasley had made a fine recovery from the snake attack, but the whole series of events left everyone uneasy, especially Harry.

Today the Weasley clan had gone out until dinner to get some more provisions for the Order headquarters and to go shopping for some new winter robes for Ginny. The rest of the Order was scattered about, with Tonks at her parents home and Moody at the Ministry, and the rest going about other duties. That left just Harry and Sirius at Grimmauld Place for the day. And thus, Harry could see no reason why he had to climb out of his warm bed just yet, but when the clock downstairs finally chimed noon, Harry couldn’t make excuses any longer. He threw off the covers and stumbled to the door, surprised that Sirius had not stuck his head in to check if Harry was indeed still alive.

The hallway has silent except for the occasional creak from Buckbeak down in the master bedroom as Harry made his way to the kitchen. The table was empty and there were no remains of Sirius’ breakfast. Harry fixed himself a cup of tea and spread some jam on a slightly stale scone before heading back towards his room.

At the top of the stairs, he paused, listening. He could have sworn he’d heard something. There was a moment of silence, and then the noise echoed from down the hall again; a series of deep, congested coughs. Harry furrowed his brow. Was Mundungus here? He crept down the hallway and stopped outside Sirius’ bedroom. The sound was coming from inside. He knocked softly.

“Cm’in,” Sirius mumbled.

Harry pushed the heavy wooden door open. The curtains in the room were still drawn and it was dim except for a bit of sunshine peaking over the top of the valences. Sirius was still in bed, bed sheets up to his chin. Harry set his scone and tea down on the bureau and approached the big four-poster.

“Good morning,” he said. “Or afternoon, actually.”

“Mhmm,” replied Sirius, stifling a cough into a closed fist. “Whadever tibe it is, its too earbly.”

Harry frowned.

“Are you ill?” he asked. “You sound horrid.”

“I’b fine,” Sirius said, sniffled. “I’be just gob a bit of a cou….ahhh… aTHSCHoo!”

He sneezed forcefully into the crook of his elbow, and gave a big, congested sniffle.

“Is Molly here?” he asked, his voice less congested but still hoarse. “She usually makes a decent tonic for these sorts of things.”

“She’s at the Burrow for the day,” said Harry. “I can see if we have some Pepper-Up somewhere.”

“Doubt it,” Sirius replied, rolling over. “We threw a bunch of expired stuff out while cleaning. Don’t think it got repla….acce…..ahhTSCHOOOO!”

“Have you got a hanky around?” Harry asked.

“Dop drawer,” croaked Sirius, dragging the back of his hand across his nose.

Harry fished around in the dresser and retrieved a silk green handkerchief.

“Always good Slybthurins,” said Sirius wryly, taking it and blowing his nose with a loud and gurgling honk.

“Can I get you some tea or something?” Harry asked. “Or are you going back to sleep? I’m sorry I disturbed you, I just heard…

“It’s fine,” interrupted Sirius. “I appreciate the concern. I guess I ought to drag myself out of bed anyway. A bit of sunlight will do me good.”

He slid out from underneath the comforters and fumbled under the bed for a ratty old pair of slippers. When he stood up again, he was lit by the sun from above the curtains for a moment, and Harry tried not to gasp. He was thinner than Harry had realized, standing there in just his pajama bottoms. Clothes hid years of starvation in Azkaban better than Harry could have imagined.

“Do you want a jumper?” Harry asked when he finally recovered his voice.

“Sure. Bottom left drawer.”

Harry selected a thick cabled red sweater that looks suspiciously like Molly Weasley’s handiwork and Sirius pulled in on. Collecting the quilt from the foot of the bed, he wrapped it around his shoulders, took the green handkerchief from the nightstand, and padded after Harry downstairs and into the library where he settled into one of the squashy chaises.

Sinking into the cushions, Sirius wrapped the quilt over his legs, and Harry could hear him wheezing slightly from the short walk. He sat down beside Sirius, and his godfather reached an arm out, pulling him against his side.

Harry rested his head on Sirius’ shoulder. He was not used to this kind of familial contact, but it felt…nice. Normal, he decided. Sirius, too, seemed unsure of the position, but sighed a little and Harry felt him relax.

“Would you like some tea? Or I think Bill left some coffee too,” asked Harry.

“I would appreciate that, Harry,” said Sirius. “I can get it in a minute. No need to fuss about me…eeh….esTcHoO!”

He sneezed loudly and rubbed at his nose.

“I’m not fussing!” Harry replied, slightly hurt. “Am I?”

“No, not nearly as much as Remus would,” said Sirius with a grin. “Your father, on the other hand, would have insisted that in this condition I could still play Quidditch and that staying in bed was unacceptable. Good thing we kept Remus around.”

“He would have said you should still go play Quidditch?” said Harry. “I mean, I’m all for Quidditch, but that’s a bit rough.”

“Well, you’ve got your mother’s sense, then,” said Sirius. “She usually knew wha…aahhh…t’shsshumf!”

He caught his sneeze in the handkerchief and groaned, wiping his nose.

“Ugh, sorry,” he said. “Maybe you shouldn’t be sitting so close. This cold is fierce. I haven’t felt this foggy since the time we drank six bottles of firewhiskey at your dad’s stag night.”

Harry laughed.

“Six bottles?!”

“I will have you know that Mr. Remus Lupin finished a whole bottle himself and still managed to get us all home safely. That’s the advantage of werewolf metabolism.”

“What did my mum say?”

“We did our best to hide the evidence. James, Remus, and…and Peter…they stayed the night at my place…I think. Anyway…”

He broke off as his chest seized up and he doubled over, coughing. Harry put a hand on his godfather’s back and rubbed circles up and down as Sirius coughed.

When the coughs finally died away, Harry grabbed the spare afghan from one of the dusty, old library chairs and wrapped it around Sirius’ shoulders, adding to the nest of quilts.

“I’ll go fix you some tea,” he said. “Stay here.”

In the kitchen, Harry brewed a cup of herbal lemon and poured it into a large mug. Gathering a few butter biscuits on a plate, he put the whole arrangement onto a tray and carried it back to the study.

Sirius was stretched out on the sofa now, blankets tucked oddly around him. He was snoring softly through his red, congested nose. Harry set the tray down and pulled the covers further up. Sitting in an armchair across from his godfather, he watched Sirius sleep. What had it been like in Azkaban, when Sirius was sick? Harry shivered at the thought. He’d make Sirius feel safe and help him to heal, in more ways than one. It was less than Sirius deserved, locked up in this house that he hated, but it was what Harry could do, and it was enough.

[The Sneezster]

Awww. That's so sweet!

[stargazer]

Thanks so much for writing that for me! I loved it. Definitely worth the wait.

[Dusty15]

Anytime sunshine hehe! glad you liked it

[silentdreamer789]

absolutely adorable.