Moon Blessed

Sirius Black exhaled gently as he leaned against the porch of his home. In front of him, the unusual plants that his godson had planted in a messy yet beautiful design swayed to an unseen breeze. Roses that sang, poppies that snored and other flowers with eccentric magical quirks bloomed across the wide space that was their garden, with the occasional vines that clung onto their fellow plant neighbours disturbingly like an attention seeking koala.

Beyond the magical front yard, the woods surrounding their property stood in silence.

Sirius pursed his lips as he caught another flash of silver and gold amongst the silent trees' canopy. He had been observing the woods long enough the past few weeks to realise that such glimpses into mysterious inhabitants' presence have been more frequent. It did not take him an educated guess to wonder what might be causing this peculiar phenomenon, after having listened to all the tales his godson had been filling him with of his past.

A flash of emerald, disturbingly similar to that of a snake's scales glinting in the sunlight, caught the Grim Animagus' attention before it disappeared.

Sirius sighed.

Sometimes he wondered if he should be happy that he had been blessed with a magical Animagus.

Not many knew what the blessing involved. For few knew about the existence of magical Animagus. The reason was tied to the fact that the existence of magical Animagus had long since faded into myths, even in the magical world.

Sirius had believed it to be a myth too. Until he discovered his own inner animal to be that of a Grim.

The truth was, a magical Animagus was not merely an ability. It was a bond. Sirius had long learned by questioning his best friend James – and the occasional subtle questions to the traitor too, though he would rather not think of him now – back in Hogwarts to realise that unlike him, James had not had his Animagus form become another part of him.

Sure, the then Potter scion had given the stag form a name, Prongs. But had James and Prongs been different entities?

No. They had not. Prongs had merely been James in the form of a stag.

And did James receive new abilities with the completion of his Animagus transformation?

No again.

The same could not be applied to Sirius.

It had been frightening at first. Sirius had wondered long ago if he had messed up his transformation. For, unbeknownst to most of his friends (except James), Padfoot had not been merely Sirius in a dog form.

No, Padfoot had been a Grim that somehow, miraculously, coexisted with Sirius. The being did not disappear once Sirius had completed his transformation and then transformed back into his human form.

No.

Instead, Padfoot simply diminished into a presence within his mind, growling and pacing when influenced by Sirius' own anger or calmly observing while Sirius thrived through life. And when he had been locked away in Azkaban, it had been this presence that continued to snarl and occupy the thoughts within his mind, snapping at the depressing memories the Dementors evoked in his human state with a bloodlust Sirius had not thought the Grimm could possess.

On hindsight, he supposed that was idiotic of him to believe. Padfoot was a Grim.

Of course, even then Padfoot had not been able to eliminate the effects of the Dementors. Rather the Grim muted their effects while Sirius was in human form. But the worst of his worse memories always bled through. He was certain that he could never forget the memory of the dead Potters, even now when he was far away from the Dementors presence. Such was the impact of their continued aura having been inflicted on him for the past twelve years.

The times he spent transformed, however, had been much more effective in disrupting the Dementors' depressing presence. The death omen that he had been blessed for an Animagus form was immune to the Dementor's own magic that was unsurprisingly reeking of death and loss. Unfortunately, his opportunities to retreat into his Grim form had always been inconsistent.

Sirius had never been very accepting of his Grim form until Azkaban, if he were to reflect on it. He had not appreciated the blessing fully in his youth, the now grown man could admit.

Truth was, he had been terrified of it and the unprecedented abilities that came along with it.

He had always been afraid that despite having different opinions than his family and despite having done everything in his life to contradict his family's dark allegiance, he would inadvertently be dark due to his blood heritage.

He had hated that insecurity. But he had had no way to stamp it out. Back then, he had not known that being dark was not equivalent to being evil. So, his fifteen-year-old self who had been raised amongst the superstitions of the magical world had known that the Omen of Death itself was a creature that was as dark as they came.

And in his ignorance, Sirius had then believed that perhaps he was indeed inherently doomed to be evil, despite wanting to be good.

James had had a fit when he found out about Sirius' insecurity along with his magical Animagus form. The Potter scion had then proceeded to give Sirius one very, very serious lecture to try and convey how stupid Sirius was being to think that way. He had assured, and somewhat managed to convince Sirius that he was still good despite having a Grim Animagus. The wizard had even reluctantly helped Sirius find ways to conceal the true form of his Animagus, so that others would believe Sirius to be a dog rather than a Grim. And the secret of his Animagus had been something James promised to keep to the grave. (Which he had.)

James had tried to tell him that his inner animal did not matter when he was still a person who had a good heart. But Sirius had not learnt the message his best friend had been giving until he had lost everything and it was too late.

Sirius let out a bitter sigh at the regret lacing his memories and gripped the railing of the porch just a bit tighter.

He did learn however, that, contrary to his initial doubts, he had not somehow botched up his transformation.

The answers Sirius sought about his Animagus form's unorthodox nature had actually come from his family's library. No matter what he thought of his blood family, Sirius could not deny that they had powerful knowledge within their reach. (Not that any of them bothered using it much.) So, in a fit of burning curiosity, Sirius had made his way towards the family library on his summer before sixth year.

To his good fortune, he had found a book that answered his queries long before he had his infamous fight with his mother that eventually had him running away. And despite the place he had found it from, the dusty tome – which he had taken when running away – had proved very useful.

The book had mentioned how magical Animagus were different from Animagus transformations that involved normal magicless animals.

In the span of a couple of weeks, Sirius was enlightened on how it was normal for people with magical Animagus to have the qualities of their inner creatures carry through even in their human state after unlocking their transformations. Suddenly, being able to smell different scents and even see magic like his Grim could was not something to be terribly afraid of.

Yet, Sirius had learnt to control it, for his fear – though diminished – had still lingered long enough for him to not accept his blessing. So while he had been adopted, for all means, by the Potters, Sirius had spent the summer before his sixth year leaning to improve his Occlumency so as to shield the bond between him and Padfoot.

It was a terrible mistake he had made under the influence of ignorance and fear.

And he paid a terrible price for it in the end.

For once he refused to explore the gifts his Grim form gave him, he refused the benefits that he could have reaped from it.

It had taken a cold day in his Azkaban cell, staring in horror at the wards and magic he could see since he embraced his Animagus form fully, for Sirius to realise how big of a screw up he had done in his youth. How he had passed away the chance to change the miserable fate awaiting his best friends without even realising it.

Because, every time he looked across to see his insane cousin who was his neighbouring cellmate, he could see the swirl of bond magic that was the Death Eater mark.

Despite the long sleeves of her prison robes hiding them.

"You seem to be in deep thought."

Sirius whipped around to face the goblin that had silently come to stand beside him, startled.

"Huh?"

Griphook rolled his eyes.

"Honestly mutt, learn to pay attention to your surroundings."

"Hey!" Sirius frowned at goblin, disapproving of the nickname given despite knowing he could do nothing to change it.

"So, what have you been overthinking in that head of yours?"

"I was not overthinking. I was merely thinking," Sirius huffed out in response as he went back to stare sullenly at the woods ahead. Another flash – this time, he thought it seemed like feathers from a bird's wing that were a deep shade of blue – met his eyes. It was gone before he could confirm his thoughts, just like the other glimpses he had seen.

"Either is dangerous for you, mutt."

Sirius pouted at the goblin's response but did not bother to respond. The duo stood in silence for a few minutes.

"Is he always this late?"

Sirius did not need to ask who the goblin was referring to.

"No. He's usually back before lunch."

"You don't sound worried."

Sirius shrugged.

"I believe Harry learned from the last time he let his guard down in the ocean. So, I don't think his absence right now is due to him running into trouble or danger. Rather, he is likely purposely delaying his return today."

Griphook hummed, not proving a response.

Sirius frowned.

"You know why he is not returning early, don't you?"

The man could see from the corner of his eyes that the goblin was nodding.

"Do you, Black?"

Sirius pursed his lips. He did not like that the goblins were purposely antagonising his godson. But he had interacted with the lot of them well enough to realise they do genuinely care for his pup. So, he could only deign that there was a good reason for them to be doing whatever they were doing now.

"He doesn't want to spend more time being locked up than is absolutely necessary."

Griphook hummed again.

Sirius sighed. Spared a glance to his companion. Then sighed again.

He knew he did not even know a quarter of what his godson's experience had been under the Dursleys or Dumbledore. But he had gleaned enough to know Harry hated cramped spaces. There was a reason why his godson had windows so big and wide that they could pass for gigantic doors inside his bedroom. Sirius had thought he had walked into an open balcony the first time he had stepped foot there. The windows truthfully made up most of the walls in the teen's room and when opened, it almost seemed like the occupants in the room were simply standing within the shelter of a cloister. All they had to do was step out (or jump since Harry's room was technically on the second floor) and they would be suddenly in their front garden or backyard.

Then there was also the fact that recently, Harry had requested to remove the roof of the house. Remove it.

Remove the whole damn roof.

The child had not even requested for some sort of barrier when he had made the absurd request. Sirius had a good five seconds of panic at hearing Harry's desire, for he honestly believed the goblins would do it, if Harry had insisted enough. Fortunately, the goblins had better sense than he gave them credit and had managed to talk him into having the ceiling become transparent or charmed to reflect the weather outside, instead of completely removing a vital part of the house.

They had expertly persuaded the teen into accepting their proposal while pointing out how the solution would still enable him to feel as if he were living under the open sky without barriers.

So, Sirius had to wonder what they were trying to achieve by boarding up the entire house in a way that no natural light nor air from outside could enter it. He may not be an expert in wards and charms for architecture especially, but Sirius was well aware the goblins could find a better solution to keep the full moon from his pup without this overkill method.

He himself was finding the whole situation uneasy. Despite the air freshening charms and light wards placed within the interior of the house, the feeling of slight suffocation still reached him. Granted, the house had no similarities to his previous prison but just the thought of being locked within walls with no escape for a good few hours was making him feel claustrophobic.

Sirius could not fault his godson for staying as far away as he could from the house at the moment.

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why?" Sirius repeated. "Why have you boarded up the house? You know there are better and more efficient ways to keep the full moon from affecting Harry tonight. And you know better than even me how badly being locked up makes Harry feel. So why are you doing this?"

Sirius turned to face his companion but Griphook did not mirror his action, choosing instead to continue facing the garden before him.

"I thought you would have realised by now, Black."

Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Griphook, not to make it seem like I'm a victim but I currently have trouble coming to terms with the fact that I need to spend the night in a house with no natural light or air filtering in. I'm hardly in a mental state to figure out your motives."

Griphook turned to finally meet his gaze and Sirius found the goblin's face to hold that of a delayed realisation.

"Ah. I forgot. Fradgrot did mention it could happen but my memory may have temporarily lapsed. You're getting reminded of you Azkaban days."

Sirius raised a sceptical eyebrow.

"You forgot I was there?"

Griphook shrugged.

"Not so much as forgetting than not realizing the full impact this board-up-the-fish's-house project will have on you, Black. You have come quite far in your healing this summer that sometimes I would not believe you had stayed long in the wizarding prison." Griphook paused. "I apologise if that came off as insensitive to your past. I did not mean to. I suppose this is honestly the reason I never could make it as a Healer."

Sirius could not help the slight upward quirk of his lips at the goblin's monotonous reply. If it had been anyone else, he would have gotten offended. But he had come to realise the goblins were sincerely honest and well meaning, once they came to care for someone.

And though he was nowhere near the level of bond his godson shared with the goblins, he had observed well enough to realise the goblins went beyond tolerating him to ever so slightly liking his presence. It honoured him and he appreciated that they could find it in themselves to care about him despite him having once been a part of the wizarding community that looks down upon the light skinned creatures.

Now he was still a wizard.

But Sirius could no longer truly group himself together with his fellow wizard kind after the betrayal the British wizarding world had dealt him and his godson after the boy had been orphaned. Even if he wanted to return back to the wizarding world, Sirius had truly come to appreciate the goblins to willingly integrate back into a community that had yet to respect the creatures who had done more for him and Harry than those who had meant to be family but did not.

Griphook seemed to understand he was not offended by the look of his face. So the goblin continued as though he had not paused.

"This whole idea came from Fradgrot actually."

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"He recommended it especially after the whole withdrawing Harrison did after finding out about the prophecy."

Sirius frowned, not following the logic much.

"You see, the fish has many ingrained bad habits, from his childhood, that have to be broken. Take the fact that the boy used to hide his intellect, for example. We had to spend days coaching him on how to discipline himself so as to not fall back into old habits of not trying hard while studying. But in the end, Fradgrot had to take an extreme measure of sitting Harrison down under his watchful eye and forcing him to study and be productive for days on end before Harrison could genuinely crack his bad habit and start to work on cultivating new and productive study habits."

Sirius' eyebrows almost rose above his hairline.

"That sounds painful, especially for someone used to purposefully slacking."

"Yes. But it worked for Harrison. So, considering that experience, Fradgrot decided that to break another one of his bad habits, we have to try and force him into another extreme situation."

Sirius frowned.

"I still don't follow."

"What do you think is something that the fish can improve on, especially considering his panic and brooding over the whole prophecy matter?"

Sirius frowned. The incident was still rather fresh, considering the ritual his godson had done had happened mere three days ago. He thought back to the days before the ritual preparation however, and remembered the muted worry and fear that he had felt in his godson through their strengthening bond. Harry had yet to realise that Sirius could feel emotions and gauge his mood through it as their relationship grew over the summer and though he knew he should mention it to Harry, Sirius could not help but keep the knowledge to himself for the time being.

Why?

Because Harry has the habit of keeping too many things to himself, unused as he is to depend on others when he needs to, due to having had too many people fail him in the past.

Sirius' eyes widened. That was it. The most problematic bad habit his godson still had and was terrible at breaking, if what the whole shun-his-magic-out-of-fear episode he had had indicated anything.

"You got it then."

Sirius nodded mutely.

"But how is this situation you created going to help? I mean what could you possibly be expecting Harry to do – ?!"

"Black," Griphook interjected calmly, "You and I are both aware that we goblins can do something much less suffocating for a solution to this moon problem. Harrison is aware of this too. Yet, the boy has not made a complaint. He is uncomfortable and he knows the night ahead will be even more discomforting with the current arrangements. Yet still all Harrison has chosen to do is hide and keep silent. Why? Most likely because he is used to not being allowed to voice his opinions. He is likely also already thinking on ways to make the night easier for himself right now too. All by himself.

And add in the fact that we are people who have shown him actual care, he probably also has some misguided belief that he shouldn't complain so as to not trouble us."

Griphook let out a sigh.

"This is not the first time we've encountered this problem, mutt. Before you came, we had the exact same problem with the child. Fradgrot and Jadeclaw especially attest to this. They are in charge of monitoring his health. But it is difficult to help a patient who does not think it is necessary to voice out something is hurting him due to a strong belief that he should not be a burden and should just handle the pain."

Sirius' frown deepened. Within him, Padfoot growled lowly. Had he not vowed to keep his godson as his first priority, Sirius was certain he would be heading towards the blasted Dursleys home right now to tear apart the abusive filth to shreds. After that, he would have gone looking for Dumbledore too to settle scores with that senile, old, nosy, untrustworthy goat.

Sirius was brought back to reality as Griphook resumed speaking, distracting him from the dark thoughts in his head.

"The incident with the Prophecy and the resulting chaos had been the biggest blow up we had to see due to this behaviour. And now, with a mere three days left for Harrison to return to Hogwarts, it has become even more vital that we break this habit. Because once he leaves for school, it becomes even more risky for him to keep things to himself, especially with the way trouble keeps finding him."

Sirius kept silent, letting the goblin's words sink in. He still could not understand how boarding up the house was going to break Harry's habit of trying to solve things himself without seeking necessary help. In his opinion, all this was likely going to achieve was Harry blowing up in his agitation and –

The ex-convict's eyes widened.

Perhaps that is exactly what the goblins wanted to happen.

"You're waiting for him to lose his shit, aren't you?"

Griphook grimaced ever so slightly at his choice of words. Sirius shot him an unimpressed look. He had heard the goblin use words even more crass when he was worked up.

"Yes. That is the plan. We've tried the easy, nice way. But it has not worked. So we're changing tactics. Harrison has the habit of learning really well under extreme stress or when things get very dire and cause chaos.

Perhaps this is rather cruel of us, to exploit his weakness like this, but we rather not he risks learning this lesson of depending on others in say Hogwarts, where he has much more to lose if he trusts the wrong people, especially with his new fishy tendencies."

Sirius pursed his lips.

"Still Griphook, I doubt this will end well. Harry's been really stressed lately. The start of school being right around the corner is causing him much anxiety. He has yet to master his last power, the one where he is able to manipulate the temperature of water to go higher and still has not found a suitable wand core to get his wand working. He is also not succeeding in whatever Occlumency task Fradgrot had set for him from weeks before, which I've been told is also important for him to master as it affects his wand and magic too."

Sirius bit his lip, his own nerves about his now vulnerable godson going back to Hogwarts rising up.

"And, he also received a letter yesterday evening. His friends are apparently coming to Diagon Alley the day before Hogwarts reopens. Though he's travelled around the wizarding world plenty of times without any water accidents outing his condition, Harry is always worried when he travels out amidst people. Spending time with the Weasleys and his other friend – Hermione, I think her name was – is something he realises has high risks of getting messy. So that's another thing he worries over since yesterday night."

Sirius paused, realising he had been rambling quite a bit.

"What I'm trying to say is, this plan of yours might work way too well for your liking. Do you realise that?"

Griphook, who had listened patiently to his rant, merely nodded serenely.

"Yes. And truthfully, it is better that way. The bigger the meltdown, the deeper the message will sink in for Harry that there is a reason why we reiterate that he needs to come to us when he needs help. There is no shame in it. Nor is he being a burden. He knows it, of course. But he has yet to know it fully."

The surly goblin turned back to face the garden again.

"I had honestly thought he would learn this lesson from the Prophecy incident but I suppose he was too busy worrying over his magic to realise. But no matter. We'll get it into his head soon enough."

Griphook spared a glance behind him to the house.

"Besides, the quicker he learns it, the faster we can take down these ghastly charms and wards that board up the house. Honestly, it's even getting to us, how utterly suffocating the house has become."

Sirius blinked. Then gave a huge sigh. He knew that the decision had been long underway for him to stop it now. He just hoped that this was something Harry survived without much danger, since he was going to be confined to the house when he cracks.

"How are you going to calm him this time, once he inevitably panics again?" Sirius asked, out of curiosity.

Griphook gave a grin that showed too many teeth. Sirius stilled, not liking the way the goblin's smile sent shivers down his spine.

"Oh, did I forget to mention?" Griphook started innocently. Sirius gulped as a wave of foreboding hit him like a tsunami. "Us goblins are not going to be here for the show, unfortunately. We have important fieldwork research to do. You are going to be looking after the fish tonight."

"What?!"

Why are you looking as if your prey escaped, pup?

Harry tilted his head slightly before realising that was his companion's equivalent of asking why he was looking sad. The teen blinked letting the weird expression register properly in his head.

Honestly, it had been a whole summer with him talking to animals. But he doubted that there would ever come a day where he would truly understand the way animals lived and thought.

"I just have lots of things on my mind, Viva," Harry replied, though he doubted the Great White would understand his concerns.

Well perish them then. They do not seem to do you any good.

Viva circled around him slowly before jutting against his head as though trying to push away the worries in his mind. Harry bit back a smile at the shark's antics, gently taking a hold of its head and stopping its actions fondly.

For an apex predator, Viva acted more like a mother hen, ever since the freezing incident that happened long back. It seemed the shark had realised Harry was too powerful to attack, learning well from its lesson of becoming frozen. However, since Harry had provided her with a good meal before releasing her back into the ocean, Viva seemed to have come to like Harry despite the disappointing conclusion that he was not food.

Now whenever he visited her part of the ocean, the Great White chose to follow him around, fretting over him as though he were her pup that was still learning to swim.

Truth be told, the shark reminded him a lot of Sirius.

"These kinds of matters cannot be rid of easily, Viva," Harry gently relayed to the shark.

Viva circled him again.

Then do you want me to eat them for you? I am hungry. I can manage.

Harry snorted, the action releasing bubbles from his mouth.

Another thing about Viva was that if her thoughts were not directed at him, then they revolved around food. Or both, on some occasion.

"I believe there was a school of fish near the caves that are south of here," Harry replied. "You can go see if they are still there for you to feed on."

Viva's mood brightened across their link and the shark seemed to gain a little speed in her swimming.

I shall pup. Thank you.

Harry smiled and brushed a soft kiss against the predator's snout. Viva grinned with her teeth to portray her happiness at the action she had come to learn was a form of affection amongst humans. The smile – an action she had learnt from seeing Harry's own smiles – was frankly jarring, with the way her pointed teeth gleamed menacingly. But Harry had come to learn that the shark did not mean to intimidate.

Maybe you should talk to the land dog you speak so fondly of then. You have mentioned that he understands you unlike others. Perhaps he can help you perish your worrying thoughts.

Viva swam away after giving her sound advice.

Harry watched her departure silently, hoping her hunt for lunch would go well. She had asked once if he wanted to accompany her for her meal but Harry had declined, stating he did not enjoy watching other fish getting eaten. The screams of agony they gave often haunted him, he told her. Viva had not understood, of course. But she had not pushed him again.

That was what he loved about most creatures. They never pushed.

Harry sighed.

How he wished life above the sea could be as simple as his relations with animals.

Harry looked upwards, gauging the rays of the distorted sunlight that reached underwater. The sun had been at its highest point a couple of hours ago. Now, it was likely halfway through its descent to the west.

His stomach gave a rumble.

Harry sighed, the action causing another flurry of bubbles to erupt around his face.

He was certain Sirius was going to have his head for daring to miss a meal. And unlike Viva, Sirius was unfortunately not easy to distract.

He swiped his tail, propelling himself forwards to head back home.

No point in stalling the inevitable, he supposed. He had to go back before the full moon anyways.

"Do you ever wonder, what would happen to us if we fell in while the moon was up?"

Silence descended upon the party of seven goblins. Griphook spared the still and silent pool before him a glance. Then tilted his head ever so slightly in serious pondering over Fradgrot's question.

"I'd rather not, my friend. I can't ever imagine the outcome turning out well."

A beat later, raucous laughter burst amongst them as each member of the research party thought of how a goblin would look sporting a fish tail.

"But if you were merely wondering if that action in itself is enough to grant someone the same gifts Harrison has been blessed with, then yes. I believe so. But of course, that is just my belief. Hopefully, we can figure out if that is indeed true by tonight."

Griphook spared a glance up at the opening of the crater they were currently in. The sky outside had darkened considerably though night had yet to fall completely upon them.

"Master Griphook?"

Griphook turned his attention to the younger goblin seeking his attention.

"You would need to drink this potion before the moon appears."

Griphook raised an eyebrow but accepted the vial that was extended towards him.

"It enables us to view magic," Fradgrot supplied from beside him as the younger goblin went back to join his team to prepare for the full moon's appearance. "Jadeclaw had it brewed the night before."

Griphook grunted, signalling that he heard. The goblin went back to staring at the pool of water before him.

"He will be fine, Griphook."

Griphook did not need to ask who Fradgrot was referring to.

"You are worrying unnecessarily. We have everything covered this time round, even for when things get out of hand, which we are expecting."

Griphook frowned.

"I would not be so confident still. From what I've come to learn, the fish attracts trouble more than a chaos pixie on fire whiskey. Besides," Griphook turned to face his colleague. "I just have a feeling that something will still happen."

"Well, we'll simply have to wait and see now, don't we? It's too late to head back now. The moon is starting to show," Fradgrot replied, pointing at the pool before him.

Griphook turned to see the distorted reflection of a partially revealed moon glimmering onto the pool's surface. He felt an ever so shift in the air around him.

"The magic is awakening."

Sirius sighed as he watched his godson from the corner of his eyes. The teen had come back by four in the afternoon, apologising quietly for missing lunch. Sirius had let it slide for the day and brought him in to have a late lunch together. Harry had obviously been grateful at him for understanding, if the side hug the boy had initiated while quietly eating his warmed-up pasta had been any indication.

But since then, Harry had simply curled up on the couch to practice his Occlumency task. From the frustrated frown the boy held every time he resurfaced from his mind, Sirius could make an educated guess that Harry was still failing at whatever he hoped to achieve. But the raven-haired boy had yet to take a break despite the hours he had spent on his Occlumency.

Sirius casted silent tempus.

Ten minutes past ten.

The moon had risen a few hours ago. He doubted Harry realised it.

The man sighed, wondering what to do. With the way Harry had retreated into his mind, he doubted the goblins' plan to cause Harry to snap was going to work.

But then again, Sirius thought as he spared another glance at his godson's frustrated expression, his mind is not exactly a proper escape from his worries.

Harry could still snap any moment.

What exactly would happen then, was something Sirius had no clue about. The ex-convict had suspicions that it would likely cause a big mess and maybe even potentially result in someone getting hurt tonight.

That would make Harry effectively regret and learn to realise why he should not bottle things up so much.

But Sirius just hoped it won't be his godson who gets hurt.

The Grim Animagus sighed.

He wondered if this was honestly good for his godson. Would this count as psychological torture? He remembered Lily once explaining the notion to him and James, but back then the wizarding world was still rather behind when it came to ensuring mental well-being.

Not that they had come far the past twelve years either.

"Master," Kreacher called out softly popping into existence beside him. "Dinner is ready. Shall Kreacher fetch the young heir to the kitchen?"

Sirius shook his head.

"It's alright Kreacher. I'll bring him over. You lay out the table. We'll join in a few minutes."

Kreacher seemed to hesitate slightly.

"Young heir is very agitated. You should be careful," the elf muttered quietly before vanishing with a soft pop, as though he were afraid to disturb Harry who seemed to be deep in concentration.

Sirius swallowed. Though he was older, he was nervous about the way the night was going to go. If Harry did indeed lose his cool, Sirius had a good feeling it would be similar to his mother's infamous temper. He made his way to his godson carefully.

"Pup? Pup?" He tapped the boy's shoulder gently. "Come on, time for dinner, pup."

He was stuck.

The notion did not bring him any comfort.

He looked around. Everywhere he turned, it was simply a vast abyss of nothing.

No thoughts – he had left them behind in his upper mind.

No emotions – they had vanished along with his thoughts.

No magic – that had sped away from him the moment he fell into this abyss.

The way to find the tangible part of the soul – that is your magical core – is in truth easy. You are simply finding your magic in your mind. It is like lifting your hand to observe your palm. You have all the control and will to accomplish it. All you have to do is will it.

He looked around. He had tried going many directions. But each way had led nowhere.

He swam forwards again, willing himself to find his magic.

But like the countless times he had tried before him, he failed.

I will grant you this clue. You are highly sensitive to magic, Harrison. It makes your ability to find your core that much more likely for success.

You have all the puzzle pieces Harrison. You just need to fit them together.

He stilled, a nagging feeling that he forgot something vital overcoming him. It was a welcome change to the abyss of nothing. But the harder he tried to grasp the memory he forgot, the further it travelled from his reach.

Remember, you are trying to find your magical core. The place where your magic rests and regenerates within your soul. You have lived so long with only feeling it in your veins and mind. Or if it was called upon to manifest outside of you. Now, it is time for you to find it in its physical form while it is still inside you. Not outside.

Nothing. Nothing. NOTHING.

He was trying but he still could not fit the puzzle pieces he had.

He was still not sure what the puzzle pieces were, in fact.

The mind, soul and body are intertwined closely Harrison. Remember that. And you control them all through your will, which extends over all three equally. You simply need to exercise this will when it comes to your soul, because most of the time, people simply do not bother to reach out to embrace that intangible force.

Why was everything just nothing –

Harry's eyes shot open as he felt a gentle touch on his shoulder. The physical sensation pulled him out of his mindscape.

He blinked, adjusting to the sudden light that filled the living room he was in. Sirius' face loomed over him.

Harry stilled as the realisation of where he was crashed upon him. His eyes inadvertently sought out the sealed windows on the other side of the room before glancing at the door that no longer had tiny openings at its top and bottom.

Everything was sealed up.

The sensation of being caged in crawled back up his spine as he no longer had Occlumency to distract him from his surroundings. Harry bit his lip, not liking the feeling. He wished the goblins could have done something else to ensure he did not get moon spelled tonight.

Surely there was another way?

He should have asked them. The goblins never minded his incessant questions despite all their gruff way of speaking to him.

But when it had come to something so important, he had found himself so incapable of speaking up suddenly.

Harry frowned.

What was his problem honestly? He had asked the goblins for more ridiculous things than keeping his home airy and open.

"But Jadeclaw has emphasised on how important it is for you to not be in contact with the moon tonight," a voice in his head murmured. "It's honestly just one night. You can sit through one night of this can't you?"

He spared another glance at the windows on the right side of the room. The thick black curtains covering them were straight and unmoving in a way no curtain should look like. If Harry had not touched the things himself before, he would have thought the things were made of steel, not thick fabric.

Griphook's words on how the blasted things were specially charmed to ensure they would not move from their position or allow anyone in the house to move them suddenly echoed around his head.

The unease within him tightened. He had honestly forgotten what it was like to be stuck in a room with no escape.

"Don't be a brat. The goblins have gone to much trouble warding the house like this. You can suck it up for one night without needing to complain."

A hand clamped down on his shoulder and Harry flinched despite himself.

Memories of his cupboard were starting to surface in his mind despite his Occlumency shields.

"Pup."

Harry forced his eyes open and looked up to see Sirius' face. The man was wearing a gentle smile. There was no judgement in his eyes. If he were affected by Harry's flinch, Sirius did not show it. "Dinner is ready. Come."

Harry sat up with a groan on his couch. His Occlumency was going nowhere. He had hoped that having had a break by having dinner would have helped him somehow. But it didn't.

The boarded windows of the room that he could see from his peripheral vision gleamed menacingly. Harry felt his anxiety shoot up.

"Alright focus. Focus on something else. Try practicing your powers."

Yes. That was it. He would practice his water powers. He rushed up and grabbed a self-refilling jug and a cup from the kitchen, thanking Kreacher when the elf helped him in getting the two things back to the living room without spilling any water on him. Sirius, who had been conversing with Kreacher before Harry had stepped into the kitchen, had silently observed him.

If the way the man looked had him seemed to suggest he was afraid Harry was going to break, Harry did not comment. He chose to ignore Sirius instead. Merlin knows talking about his whole feelings was what Harry needed as of now.

He would not know what to say, even if he wanted to.

Once he was settled back on his couch, Harry took in a deep breath before staring in determination at the cup of water before him.

Ever so slowly he brought his right hand over the glass and curled his outstretched fingers inwards to his palm.

The water before him started to bubble and boil. His magic flared beyond his control.

Within a second, the water in the come vanished in a puff of steam before his hand clenched to a fist.

Harry stared at the empty glass, stamping down the frustration within him. This had been the exact problem he had been faced with for the past how many days.

It was disheartening to say the least, especially when he remembered how he had mastered his first two powers much more quickly and simply the last time.

He had long ago synced his magic to the water he touched. But it seemed despite the sync his magic has with the water, it was of no use for him when trying to control the rate at which he boiled water.

The emerald-eyed teen counted to ten in his mind, then calmly refilled the glass with water from the jug beside him.

He simply would have to try again, he thought. Practice made perfect after all, did it not?

Hand over glass.

Curl in fingers slowly.

"The water has vanished," his inner voice pointed out the obvious.

Harry refilled the glass.

Hand over glass.

Curl in fingers slowly.

"There it goes again."

Harry refilled the glass.

Hand over glass.

Curl in fingers slow –

"Gone."

He refilled the glass.

Hand over glass.

Curl in –

"Gone."

Refill.

Hand over glass –

"Gone."

Refill.

Hand over –

The glass shattered as soon as the boiling water evaporated – it was as good as sublimation at this point – away.

Harry's magic snarled along with him.

"Dammit!"

A crash had him whipping around to face his right. The sight of sealed up windows greeted him for a moment before his vision was filled with his walking wardrobe and animated umbrellas.

Harry waved his hand, setting his agitated magic to use by vanishing the glass cup he had shattered.

Faint tinkling coming from his moving furniture had Harry turning to them again to tell the things half-heartedly that he was fine.

"Is it just me, or did that window move closer?"

"Pup?"

Harry whirled around again, this time to his left. Sirius' concerned face swam in his vision. Behind the man, Kreacher could be seen nervously peering up at him.

" – you alright?"

Harry shook his head to clear the distorted feeling overwhelming him and tried to focus on his godfather's voice.

"Fine." His voice came out rather raspy to his own ears. He cleared it weakly. " 'M fine, Paddy."

A tap to his shoulder had him turning around again, missing the worried looks exchanged between his godfather and house elf. He found his umbrella – it was the fire belching one, he recognised – leaning into his personal bubble, looking almost worried, which confused Harry still despite living with the thing for a whole summer because he still could not understand how a non-living thing could feel anything at all.

"I'm fine, really," he reassured the umbrella all the same, shoving away the slight amount of ridicule he felt at the action.

The room swam a bit more as he caught sight of the sealed windows.

Something trickled down his forehead.

"Sweat," his inner voice murmured. "It is getting rather hot, don't you think?"

Harry shuddered.

"Could you cast a cooling charm, Paddy?" he asked, turning to the man with a weak smile.

Sirius for his part did wave his hand over him but Harry felt nothing take effect.

He raised an eyebrow at the man.

"Was that supposed to do something?"

Sirius frowned.

"Pup, I can feel the charm from here," Sirius muttered. The man rested his palm against Harry's forehead only to snap it back towards his chest with a sharp cry.

Harry stared in horror as he caught a glimpse of the burnt skin when Sirius revealed his hand a moment later.

"You burnt me," Sirius muttered, staring at his hand in confusion.

A part of Harry – a small, small part buried way away from all the chaotic emotions coursing through him – realised that Sirius was not accusing him or anything. But that did not stop the rest of him from misunderstanding those three words.

Guilt crashed him in waves.

"This is all my fault," he thought. "Something is going wrong with me. I should have done something. I knew this whole night was going to go terrible. I should have distracted myself better."

"Or maybe just opened your mouth to tell the goblins how uncomfortable you felt at being locked up in the first place," a voice that sounded similar to Hermione pointed out in his head.

Harry bit his lip. His hands, which were resting beside him on the sofa clawed the soft material that made up the furniture in his agitation. He watched in varying levels of guilt and concern as Kreacher tended to his godfather's burnt hand.

"I need to leave," Harry thought to himself. He got up and clambered to the other side of the sofa, unconsciously trying to distance himself from his companions. He missed again the way Sirius and Kreacher watched him in worry even as they tried to heal Sirius' hand.

His animated furniture crowded around him, lending support to his suddenly wobbly legs. Harry noted again that the room seemed to spin again. He cursed internally. He had glanced at the windows again.

"I need to leave," he muttered to himself under his breath. Beside him, one of his umbrella's gave a bounce, as though it were happy, but he paid the thing no mind, even as it hopped away without any warning a beat later.

Those things made no sense to him on his good days.

I need to leave before I make things worse.

His rationale side pointed out that he could not truly leave, since it was a full moon night.

Harry supposed the next best thing was retreating to his bedroom, where he could at least make sure he won't hurt anyone while he was locked up.

Guilt overwhelmed him again at the reminder that he burnt Sirius. He glanced over to the man, hoping to see if his hand was healed already by Kreacher. But Sirius' face caught his attention instead. The man was staring at something behind Harry with a dawning look of horror. Unsettled, Harry turned around to see what was distressing his godfather.

His own eyes widened in panic at what he witnessed.

The umbrella that had hopped away was currently pulling on the curtains.

Uh-oh.

Harry remembered that Griphook had said nobody in the house could move the charmed curtains. But he did not know if that extended to whacky furniture that could think on their own due to magic. He did not want to find out.

As much as he would love for the curtain to give way to the umbrella's ministrations, Harry knew he should not tempt the already horrible night with the full moon's effects. It would turn catastrophic.

He reached out a hand, intent to pull the umbrella to his side with magic if need be, even as his voice rose up in his throat to call the thing away from the sealed windows. But before that could happen, the umbrella in question seemed to give up on the curtain and hopped backwards by a few steps.

Harry dropped his hand, relieved. He supposed the charm did indeed includ the wacky furniture too.

Unfortunately, his relief could not last long.

For a beat later, to his, Kreacher and Sirius' mutual horror, the bright yellow umbrella belched out a gigantic orange-blue flame that ate away the entire curtain before it.

Harry stared in horrified fascination at the sight before him before instinct kicked in and had him call to the water he could still sense from the self-refilling jug still resting on the coffee table. He hurled the never ending stream of water at the burning curtain before him and watched in confusion as the fire before him extinguished a beat later with an actual cry of anguish, while producing a screen of greenish-grey smoke in the process.

Harry blinked. He was certain that was not how fires extinguished normally. He supposed that was merely a side effect of the fire belonging to wacky furniture.

He sighed in relief, glad that at least the crisis had been averted. To his dismay, he realised a moment later, that he had relaxed too soon again.

For once the weird green smoke disappeared – rather quickly too, might he add – he realised that the entire curtain had effectively burnt away. Where once he had been seeing a block of black that blocked his view of the outside world, a clear glass window greeted him instead.

A clear glass window that provided him with a crystal-clear view of the darkened sky outside where the full moon shone brightly against the darkness like a well refined diamond.

Harry distantly heard his godfather curse behind him before everything faded to nothing to his senses and the full moon became the only thing he could focus on.

He ran.

With his heart pounding against his chest. Drops of sweat trickled down his faces, mingling with the tears that flowed down his eyes and the blood that streamed from his head.

His lungs were screaming, begging for him to stop. To take a moment to rest. To breathe.

But that was a luxury he could not afford. Not when he could still hear the sounds of shouts from the distant.

The moon shone in its glory up ahead as the canopy of trees surrounding him disappeared. He paused, startled by the sudden change in scenery and the distinct sense of vulnerability that swallowed him as he was no longer bathed in shadows. He took a deep breath, not choosing to waste the momentary respite.

He had reached a clearing it seemed.

Up ahead, a river could be seen. He could faintly make out some boulders forming a natural bridge cross the gentle waters of it. And across the merrily running waters, waiting silently on the other side, the silhouettes of a new line of trees could be discerned.

He started to run again. He had no time to wonder where his path was going. All he knew was that he needed to run, run, run. Quicker, faster. Before they caught up–

A pain, different from the one his exhausted body had been sending him – ripped through his chest.

He tripped, falling gracelessly onto the gentle stream. A sob tore out of his lips. He clutched his chest mindlessly, not bothering to find a grip to anchor him above the surface of the river.

It did not seem to matter anymore.

That he could drown in the waters of an unknown river. That his hunters would soon catch him. That they would ensure he would be killed after most likely finding him unconscious at the bottom of the river.

He clawed at his own chest uselessly. The pain of the bond that broke had yet to lessen. He doubted it ever would.

He sunk lower into the waters around him and looked up at the moon shining high above. From under water, it looked distorted. Broken.

Like his life.

A bitter laugh escaped him. Bubbles burst forth in a flurry around him at the action. The water around him surged into his lungs.

But he didn't care. The burning in his lungs was nothing compared to the gaping hole he could feel in his soul. He could not die by the hand of water anyway. Even if he did, he would not mind.

Gone. Everything that mattered was gone.

His eyes sought the shattered moon again as black crept around his vision.

Would this be the way he went? The way his whole family went?

Slaughtered like pigs for the crime of existing the way they were created –

"HARRY!"

Harry startled, drawing his eyes away from the full moon shining beyond the window.

"Harry! Look at me!"

He felt himself being turned and was greeted by a familiar looking face.

Sirius Black. Godfather.

"Harry are you alright?"

He smiled serenely, wondering why the man seemed so worried. He was fine. He was not the one dying.

"I'm fantastic Siri darling," Harry replied brightly.

Surprise seemed to mar the slightly gaunt looking face before him.

"Harry?" The silver-eyed man tilted his head, looking at him in confusion.

He tilted his head in response. He had a feeling the man was asking him something but he had no idea what. His magic suddenly pulsed within him, reminding him of his duty.

Oh right.

Harry stepped out of the man's – Sirius, a voice in his head emphasised – grip and moved closer towards the window that was no longer sealed. He had to leave. The moon had given its call. His duty was to answer.

"What are you doing – Harry!?"

Harry did not look back. In one swift movement he had opened the window and jumped out. His magic pulsed out of him, spreading the area like an octopus that was spreading its tentacles. It sought out the hidden inhabitants of the night.

A river cuts our woods, north from where you stand, voices sung around him and within his mind.

Harry smiled.

"Thank you, friends."

He looked up at the full moon shining above him.

"Where do you think you are going, pup?"

Sirius had finally followed him outside, it seemed.

"I don't know," Harry replied, a part of him sensing that the man was important to him. That it was only polite to reply to a man that was important to him.

"What?!"

"The moon calls, Sirius Black. The moon calls. And when she calls, you answer."