A second chance at life

Cormac moved closer to Harry, his face bright red, and Harry shrunk in place without noticing. Sirius debated whether to intervene and protect Harry and decided to see how it developed first.

"I… I'm really sorry about this morning," Cormac began awkwardly. "I know it's not true and it was out of place. I'm sorry."

Harry opened his mouth to answer but no sound came out. It was clear that the apology was not genuine, and he didn't know what to say. Sirius couldn't see Harry like that and placed a protective hand on his shoulder.

"When you really want to apologize, come back," he said coldly. "For now, leave my boy alone."

Cormac rolled his eyes.

"like I said. The boy who lived, and his protective fan club," he spat in rage and turned away.

Draco grabbed his collar, stopping him from leaving.

"Take that back," Siberia is warm compared to his voice.

Cormac swallowed in fear as Sirius left Harry and approached him with a threatening posture.

"No one," Sirius hissed. "No one talks to Harry like that. You don't know what he's been through. How much he sacrificed. I want you on your knees, begging for his forgiveness."

Draco threw Cormac at Harry's feet. Ron and Hermione dragged their friends into another room, not wanting to humiliate Cormac more than he deserved. Cormac looked up, terrified.

"Please forgive me," he whispered in terror. "I don't want them to torture me. Please. I'm sorry Potter, I didn't mean to hurt you. Please forgive me."

Harry looked away.

"Sirius, let him go," asked quietly.

Draco grabbed Cormac again and threw him inside his room with a warning not to leave until dinner, then joined his friends, leaving Harry with Sirius. Sirius sat down next to Harry.

"Are you okay?" He was worried.

Harry sniffled.

"You're taking care of me," he whispered.

Sirius hugged him.

"Always," he promised.

Harry buried his face in Sirius' shoulder.

"I was scared when he came. I thought more friends would join him, but he really is the only one." He desperately tried to convince himself. "They don't hate me, and even Cormac now wouldn't dare speak like that about me anymore."

People started to return to the common room and Sirius let go of Harry.

"Go to your friends, let go of all the stress," he said quietly.

Harry joined the group standing nearby talking, and Sirius found himself someone to talk to. As children started to return from classes the eighth year students moved to their private common room.

Harry moved closer to Sirius.

"Want to go to Remus?" He asked. "He's done teaching for today."

Sirius smiled at him.

"I'm not going without you," he said firmly.

Harry blushed and pulled Sirius to the exit. When they arrived at the suite, Remus was already there. He greeted them with a bear hug.

"Each class separately was shocked that I'm gay," he sighed.

Sirius and Remus sat down on the sofa together and Harry muttered something and entered the room they had given him. Sirius closed his eyes for a long moment. Remus kissed his cheek.

"Go to him," he encouraged.

Sirius stood up, sighing. He entered Harry's room and found him sprawled on the bed that the elves had already set by now.

"Why are you here?" asked Sirius.

Harry opened his eyes.

"You deserve your own quality time," he said as if it was obvious.

Sirius sat on the edge of the bed.

"Don't worry about us," he said softly. "It's our turn to be the adults."

Harry yawned.

"I'm going to sleep," he murmured. "You really don't have to worry about me."

Sirius pulled him into a sitting position.

"You are doing your homework now," he announced.

Harry grunted and reluctantly followed him. He started writing and complaining non-stop.

Sirius sat on Remus' lap and listened to Harry's complaints with a small smile.

"You do realize it's a little odd that you enjoy hearing him complain, right?" Remus made sure, amused.

Sirius laughed.

"But he's so cute when he's mad," he defended himself.

Harry looked up from the parchment.

"I can hear you," he reminded them.

Remus shoved Sirius off him and went to the table.

"Need Help?" he suggested.

Harry stared at him open-mouthed.

"Are you serious?" His voice cracked.

Remus sat down, nodding earnestly.

"I'm sorry that until you were eighteen you didn't have anyone to help you," he explained. "At least now I'll try to help."

Harry moved the parchment towards him and explained what he needed to do. When they were done Harry hugged Remus for a long moment.

"Thanks. Normally it would have taken me much longer," he admitted.

Remus patted his head.

"My pleasure, Cub, I'm happy to do it," he declared.

Harry looked at the clock.

"Dinner," he announced.

Sirius stretched his arms.

"Moony, you can have meals delivered to your suite, can't you?" he hinted.

Remus rolled his eyes.

"We are going to the great hall," he said decisively. "Please don't be a baby about it. Harry has already missed lunch because you weren't here."

Sirius' eyes widened.

"You skipped a meal?" He asked Harry in shock.

Harry nodded slightly.

"It's not a big deal," he defended himself.

Sirius stood at one.

"It is," he said sadly, placing his hands on Harry's shoulders. "And the fact that you think it's not makes it any sadder. Harry, I'm sorry I wasn't here. It was really irresponsible of me, especially knowing how much you don't take care of yourself. Please promise me you won't skip meals anymore," he asked.

Harry looked at him in confusion.

"I promise," he said hesitantly. "But it's just a meal."

Sirius squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

"Normal meals are a basic thing that a person needs, and I don't want you to not have that."

They went to the great hall and parted ways, Harry taking a seat between his friends. After dinner they went straight back to the suite and sat on the couch, talking about everything and nothing. At ten Harry stood up.

"Should we do an early night?" He suggested. "You barely slept last night, and today was busy."

The two nodded wearily. Harry hugged them briefly.

"Draco is probably waiting for me." He smiled. "I'm sleeping in the tower tonight."

Sirius winked at him.

"Don't forget the silencing charm."

Harry made a face and walked away. As he thought, Draco was sitting on his bed talking to Ron.
Harry took a quick shower and got into bed.

"I don't think I'll have any nightmares tonight," he told Draco quietly.

Draco looked at him hopefully.

"Really?" he asked.

"Everyone who died came back. Everything is good. It's true that these are not my only nightmares, but my life is peaceful enough that I don't think there will be anything tonight."

Draco closed his eyes, curling up.

"Silence the room just in case," he requested.

Harry sighed and obeyed. Harry put a hand on Draco and closed his eyes. They fell asleep almost immediately but Harry rolled over and whimpered in his sleep. After a few hours of quiet nightmares he started screaming, his screams of terror waking his roommates. Draco and Ron tried to wake him, Dean went to call Professor McGonagall, and Seamus stood by the bed in case they needed help. Draco tried to stroke Harry's hair soothingly, but Harry pushed him away, crying hysterically. Ron climbed onto the bed and together with Draco they held Harry in place and shouted his name. Harry woke up at the sound of it and tried to free himself from their grip.

"What do you want from me?" he screamed in terror.

McGonagall strode into the room and sighed when she saw Harry's horrified expression.

"You had nightmares again," she said quietly when she saw that Draco and Ron were so busy holding him in place that they weren't talking. "Can you come with me?"

Harry nodded silently and got out of bed, shaking uncontrollably and looking at those present in fear, as if expecting them to try to kill him. Draco supported him with concern.

"Where are you taking him?" he asked the professor.

"To Sirius," she answered as if it was the most obvious thing ever. "I think there is finally someone who can help Harry with his nightmares."

Draco nodded in understanding. He sat on the bed.

"So I'm not coming." he understood.

McGonagall reached out to support Harry and he flinched a bit, making her pull back. They went down to the common room, Minerva closely watching Harry's every trembling move, until just before the portrait hole Harry's knees buckled and he fell to the floor, shaking so hard it looked like he was convulsing. Minerva turned to see Draco standing behind them with worried eyes. He rushed towards them.

"I'm going to call Sirius," he announced.

McGonagall didn't even bother to confirm. She bent down to Harry and tried to catch his gaze. Harry's breathing was shallow and rapid, and his lungs were clearly not getting enough oxygen. He tried to breathe and the anxiety in his eyes widened when he couldn't.

Draco ran down the hall to Sirius and Remus' suite, and knocked on the door forcefully. Sirius opened the door, wrapped in a robe, and his eyes widened when he saw Draco.

"Remus," he shouted. "Something is going on with Harry. I'm going to him."

He started running to the Gryffindor tower, and Draco who was running next to him explained to him what was going on. Halfway up Remus caught up to them, faster than them thanks to his Werewolf abilities. They climbed through the hole together and Sirius knelt next to the trembling boy.

"Hey, Pup," Sirius said softly.

Harry's terrified gaze landed on Sirius' face and relief washed over him.

Sirius hugged Harry gently.

"It's all right, Pup, I'm here," he whispered in his ear.

Harry took a long shaky breath and burst into tears. Sirius rocked him lightly, whispering soothing words in his ear. Remus saw Draco standing to the side, shaking, and walked up to him.

"He'll be fine," he promised, taking Draco into his arms.

Draco tensed for a moment and then collapsed onto Lupin's shoulder. Remus stroked his back, patiently waiting for him to calm down. After a minute Draco wiped his cheeks.

"Thank you," he whispered.

Harry was still crying uncontrollably and Sirius stood up, carrying him.

"I'm taking him to our suite," he told Minerva. "Thanks for calling us."

She nodded worriedly and watched them leave. Draco swallowed and went up to his room.

Remus walked next to Sirius, his arm around his shoulders. A sob escaped Harry's mouth and Remus was quick to whisper Silencio and when they got to the suite he took off the spell. Sirius placed Harry on his bed.

"Do you want me to stay with you?" he asked softly.

Harry nodded weakly, his tears still wetting his cheeks. Sirius sat down next to him, caressing his face.

"I'm here, Bambi, go back to sleep," he ordered. "I'll stay here until you wake up."

Harry grabbed his hand and closed his eyes, breathing heavily. Remus kissed Sirius' cheek, pulling his head onto his shoulder. Sirius closed his eyes and inhaled his boyfriend's scent.

"Don't stay here," he whispered. "Go to sleep. You have to teach tomorrow."

Remus kissed him again and went to sleep. Sirius stayed next to his godson, stroking his cheeks, hair and shoulders. Harry woke up again later, but relaxed when he saw Sirius next to him. He snuggled closer to Sirius and went back to sleep. At five forty five Sirius almost fell asleep. He shrugged at one and summoned six cups of coffee, drinking them one after the other. He was still tired, and he left Harry slowly, walking away from the room hesitantly. He returned after a minute with Harry's bag, biting his lip as he saw Harry moving in his bed and fumbling with his hand, looking for his godfather. Sirius rushed over to him and held his hand, and Harry's body instantly relaxed. Sirius opened the bag and took out Harry's homework, checking it and laughing silently at Remus' familiar style. When it was finally time to get up he shook Harry lightly.

"Good morning, Prongslet," he said.

Harry blinked. He sat up in his bed and looked at Sirius in confusion.

"I went to sleep in the tower," he muttered.

Sirius frowned.

"You woke up in the middle of the night from nightmares. Do you not remember?" he asked worriedly.

Harry rubbed his eyes.

"Draco was holding me," he whispered and then his voice rose in alarm. "He wouldn't let me go. I wanted to run away but Draco and Ron wouldn't let me move and then she came and tried to grab me and Draco helped me up and then he left me," Harry started to cry. "But she said she was taking me to you so I came with her but she was looking at me the whole time and suddenly I couldn't breathe. I don't remember what happened next."

Sirius hugged Harry reassuringly.

"You woke up from a nightmare and apparently tried to attack them so they held you. McGonagall wanted to help you," he promised. "You're safe, Prongslet, and you're here, with me, and everything's fine. Right?"

Harry took a deep breath.

"Yes," he whispered with self-conviction.

Remus entered the room.

"Morning," he said in a grumpy tone.

Sirius looked up smiling.

"Someone's moody," he announced cheerfully, still stroking Harry's back.

Remus mumbled something indistinct and sat down next to him, burying his face in Sirius' neck. Sirius tilted his head and kissed Remus' cheek.

"Are you okay, babe?" Worry crept into his voice.

Remus is never like that around Harry. Remus sniffled.

"Pads," a tear fell down his cheek.

Sirius was torn between continuing to hug Harry or comforting his partner.

Harry stood up suddenly.

"I have to get dressed," he explained with a frustrated sigh. "It's so unfair that I have an extra year of school."

Sirius blew him a kiss.

"Wait for us to go to breakfast," he asked.

Harry smiled reassuringly at him.

"I'm fine," he assured, picking up on Sirius' worried tone.

As soon as Harry left the room Sirius turned his attention to Remus, but didn't know what to say, so he just hugged him and kissed his forehead. Remus let out a low noise, then lost control completely. He cried loudly, without a bit of control, his tears wetting Sirius' shoulder and running down his chest. A stunned Sirius ran his hand through Remus' hair again and again, desperately searching for words.

"Rem, did something happen?" He asked helplessly. "You've been in the suite all night."

Remus choked.

"I d… I don't know," he hiccupped. "Sirius. I don't know what's happening to me."

Sirius hummed.

"It's okay, Moony," he whispered, tears welling up in his eyes. "It happens. I'm here for you."

Remus clutched his arms.

"Thanks," he whispered hoarsely, regaining control. "I'm fine. I think. And I have to go to teach. So we'll talk about it later."

Sirius sighed.

"You don't take care of yourself enough," he scolded his boyfriend. "This time I'll let you pass but the next time you break down in the morning you're taking a day off."

Remus nodded into his chest and didn't move. After a few minutes Harry came back into the room.

"I'm ready," he muttered, looking at the couple awkwardly.

Sirius motioned for him to come closer.

"You should never feel like you don't belong," he reminded him. "Come. group hug."

Harry shook his head, afraid to disturb Remus. Remus straightened up.

"Come here, Prongslet," he smiled with an effort.

Harry quietly moved closer and let them hug him tightly. When they let go of him Harry waited quietly for them to get dressed, and they walked to the Great Hall together.

Sirius and Remus went to the teachers table and Harry sat down among his friends. After breakfast Harry and Remus went to their classrooms and Sirius went to visit his brothers.

He entered the house and sighed. Everything was dark and quiet. They are still sleeping. He sat down on the couch and waited impatiently for them to come down. At nine thirty he gave up waiting and went up to their room. As usual, tears came to his eyes when he saw them hugging. He smiled and closed the door behind him, and James woke up to the soft slam.

"Good morning, Padfoot," he said with a surprised smile.

Sirius moved closer to him and kissed him lightly.

"Sorry I woke you up," he apologized.

James laughed.

"It's fine. We anyway planned to get up early and go through old photos," he reassured.

Regulus woke up and smiled at his brother.

"Sirius," he called out in a cute hoarse voice.

Sirius jumped on the bed and hugged him.

"What's up, little brother?" he asked with a small smile.

Regulus leaned his head against him.

"You're here early," he noted. "When did you get up?"

Sirius bit back a sad smile.

"About two in the morning," he answered lightly.

James and Regulus groaned in sympathy.

"Did Harry have nightmares?" Regulus asked.

Sirius nodded.

"Poor thing," he said sadly. "Even being with Draco doesn't help him."

James ran a hand over his eyes.

"He really can't come home for a few days?" he asked miserably. "He finally accepted me as his father. I want to be there for him."

Sirius and Regulus hugged him encouragingly. James got out of bed.

"Breakfast and work?" he suggested.

The brothers cheered and stood up too.

Sirius didn't eat, he was too tired, but he was awake enough to babble in the others' ears until they considered silencing him with a charm.

"Pads, why don't you go get the boxes already," James interrupted him.

Sirius stood up.

"From where?" he asked with enthusiasm.

"Spark packed everything in boxes in my parents' room," James swallowed a satisfied smile.

Sirius returned after a minute with a row of boxes floating behind him. James' eyes lit up and he jumped up, abandoning the food.

"Reg, come on, we'll eat later," he pulled Regulus' hand and hurried after Sirius into the living room.

They sat down on the floor and Sirius opened the first box. He started taking pictures out and passing them to James, commenting on his friend at different ages. They laughed to tears at pictures of two-year-old James in the bath and cried when they found the picture of Sirius, injured, the night he arrived at the Potters. Fuck knows why they have one.

"Siri," Regulus whispered. "I'm sorry I didn't protect you."

Sirius kissed his cheek.

"You're my little brother," emotion shook his voice. "You never have to protect me."

They hugged briefly and continued to go through the pictures. After a few hours Regulus stretched and asked for a break. Sirius glanced at the time and jumped to his feet.

"Lunch starts in five minutes, and when I missed it yesterday Harry cried for hours," he said.

He hugged James and Regulus one last time and went to the fireplace.

Sirius rubbed his eyes tiredly and walked towards the Great Hall. A second before entering he heard someone calling him. He turned to see Harry waving at him from the end of the hall. He waited on the side of the corridor, smiling at the students who passed him and looked at him curiously. Harry reached him and gave him a one armed hug.

"You're back for lunch," he smiled.

Sirius patted him back.

"Always," he promised.

Harry sat down next to Ron and Sirius continued to the teachers' table, to Remus. When Sirius and Remus finished eating they stopped by Harry on the way to the door.

"We're going to the suite," Sirius informed. "You can come when you're done."

Harry nodded and continued talking to Ron and Sirius smiled to himself. Harry is back to normal. James was right when he said that Harry just needed to go back to school. They walked into the suite and Sirius pushed Remus onto the sofa gently, sitting next to him and looking into his eyes. Remus sighed.

"I was tired, I'm fine," he declared.

Sirius straightened up and kissed his lips.

"I don't believe you," he answered simply.

Remus kissed him back, adding his tongue. Sirius went along until Remus took off his shirt.

"Moony," he snapped. "You're trying to distract me."

Remus blushed.

"I just want to make out with my boyfriend," he defended himself.

Sirius pulled away from him.

"Not true," he decided to go all the way. "You're taking advantage of the fact that I melt every time you kiss me to distract me from the fact that you're not okay."

Remus looked at him, hurt.

"I just want you," he whispered.

Sirius placed a hand on his knee.

"I know, but we need to talk, or it won't work."

Remus grabbed the hand on his knee.

"But we've already talked." He almost begged. "Twice."

Sirius shook his head.

"Yesterday was really a good start," he said generously. "But we didn't talk enough, and today it was barely one sentence. Doesn't count at all."

Remus swallowed twice and broke down. He broke into a soft cry, scared to hug Sirius. Sirius hugged him, stroking his back. Remus almost choked on his tears.

"You suddenly died on me," he started talking suddenly. "I didn't even get to say goodbye to you. But we also never talked about what happened in the first war. And I didn't let myself feel hurt that you thought I was the traitor because we're finally together again, and then you died and I couldn't be angry at you at all, and then I had to keep Harry from doing something stupid, and then Dora was depressed, and then I decided to marry her to have a child like you wanted, and he was so cute, but before we had a normal life I died, and now that I'm back I suddenly found out that Teddy isn't mine at all, so I married Dora for no reason, and that you're alive, but I never had time to process the fact that you died, so how am I supposed to process you being back from the dead?"

Sirius listened quietly to his boyfriend's words, tears running down his cheeks. Remus fell silent and breathed heavily, exhausted from the sudden meltdown. Sirius kissed Remus' head again and again, searching for words. Instead of talking he transformed into Padfoot and curled up on Remus' lap. Remus scratched behind his ears and smiled.

"Thanks, Padfoot," he wiped his cheeks. "You always know when this is what I need."

Padfoot licked Remus' face and Remus flinched.

"Hey, that doesn't mean I let you lick me," he complained, wiping his face and laughing.

Remus played with Padfoot's paw distractedly.

"I think this is what I need," he suddenly realized. "I don't need you to cheer me up, I just need to cry to you about what happened, get it all out, and then I can move on."

Padfoot returned to Sirius' form, who was of course sitting on Remus' lap and kissed his lips.

"But I don't have to beg every time. Right?" He tried to make sure

Remus kissed him, chuckling.

"I'm not promising anything."

"And we're going to talk about what you said," Sirius added. "I'm surprised and I don't know what to say, but we have to talk. Not when you're so upset. Take your time for a while, but when Harry is completely back to himself we're going to focus on our relationship."

They started kissing until they heard the door open and close. Harry dropped his bag with a heartbreaking sigh.

"Why do I need so many classes?" he whined.

He plopped down next to the couple and blinked when he saw Remus' red eyes, and Sirius' messy hair.

"You look like you've been fighting," he pointed at Remus. "And you look like you've been sleeping," he pointed at Sirius, confused.

Sirius reached out and ruffled his hair, his other hand still wrapped around Remus' neck.

"Remus learned to let go," he said proudly. "And then we made out."

Harry sighed dramatically.

"Too much information," he declared, grimacing.

Sirius laughed and pulled him into a hug.

"How much homework do you have today?" he was interested.

Harry curled up.

"Too much," he muttered and they laughed. "No, I'm serious, I fucking hate Snape. He seems to be deliberately trying to bother me and Draco. As if it is bothering him personally that we are dating."

Sirius nodded sadly.

"Yes. There's always that one homophobic asshole who ruins everything."

Harry swallowed.

"I just want to be with the person I love," he whispered.

Sirius kissed his forehead.

"I'm sorry, Prongslet, really. I understand how you feel. I wish I could change it."

He rubbed Harry's shoulder.

"So what are we doing today?" Sirius tried to change the bad mood.

Harry stood up and took off his shirt.

"I'm going to sleep," he announced. "Sirius, you didn't sleep at all last night, did you? Go to sleep."

Sirius yawned.

"I like it," he smiled tiredly. "But I have this interesting feeling that if you sleep and I'm not next to you, you'll wake up from nightmares."

Harry lowered his head.

"Then I'll do homework and you'll go to sleep," he surrendered, aware of the truth of his godfather's words.

Sirius stood up.

"No. you're coming to our bed. I'm sure Remus is fine with that," he said in a questioning tone.

Remus nodded.

"Of course it's fine," he cried.

Harry mumbled a quiet thank you and followed them into the room. Sirius motioned for Remus to go to bed.

"You are the big spoon," he announced.

Remus obeyed, and Sirius lay down next to him. Harry lay down with his face buried in Sirius' chest and breathed deeply.

"Good night, Pads," he whispered. "Sorry for keeping you up."

Sirius kissed his head.

"I love you, Prongslet. It wasn't a problem."

Sirius' eyes almost closed, but he couldn't let himself fall asleep before Harry. When Harry fell asleep Sirius let go and let himself fall asleep. He woke up after two and a half hours. Harry was already awake and looking at him in silence. Sirius smiled tiredly.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" he asked.

Harry shrugged.

"It didn't bother me. You're holding me anyway."

Remus woke up and rubbed his eyes.

"It's late," he got stressed, and got up from bed.

Harry buried his face in Sirius' neck.

"We don't need to rush," he claimed.

Sirius ruffled his hair.

"You don't need to get up," he reassured. "Remus needs to prepare lessons for tomorrow."

Remus left for his classroom after a minute and Harry looked after him.

"So he cried," he said matter-of-factly.

Sirius nodded.

"I'm glad you weren't here," he admitted.

Harry sniffled.

"Me too," he whispered. "I need at least one strong person."

Sirius tightened his hug.

"Am I not enough?" he asked jokingly.

Harry giggled.

"You cry a lot. almost as much as I do," he answered.

Sirius shook his head.

"I can't argue with that," he muttered.

They lay in each other's arms for a few more minutes.

"I have homework to do," Harry groaned in despair.

Sirius let go of him.

"Go start, I'll come help you in a minute," he ordered.

Harry sat up in bed.

"I want to go home," he said suddenly.

Sirius raised an eyebrow.

"Is there a specific reason?" he asked carefully.

Harry shook his head.

"I just want to talk to my dad," he explained.

Sirius bit his lip.

"I can't take you home," he whispered. "Either we'll both be kicked out or everyone will be upset that you do whatever you want because you're Harry Potter."

Harry looked at him with disappointment.

"Okay," he mumbled.

He went to do his homework and refused to accept Sirius' help.

"I'm fine," he insisted.

Sirius ruffled his hair.

"Find something that will make you feel better here," he said quietly before returning to the couch, looking at him quietly from there.

Remus came back to get them on the way to dinner, and talked on the way. Harry just listened in silence. After dinner Harry went for a walk with Draco, and returned to the suite only later, to sleep. The three of them slept together again.

"Are you sure it's not weird?" Harry hesitated.

Remus patted his shoulder.

"You are a marauder. We do it all the time. The thing the Marauders are best at is cuddling," he promised.

Harry smiled and got into bed, falling asleep almost immediately.