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In His Place	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Sirius Views: 72865 -:- Recommendations : 16 -:- Currently Reading : 16
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, so sad for me, and make no money off this story, even sadder for me.

Chapter List
- 13
- 14
- 15
Beta'd by the amazing Tenchi. Love you, woman, you're the best!

With help from Lynn who works with me when it comes to flow, continuity and other issues.

Just a reminder of what's on my profile; reviews complaining or whinging about the lack 'o sex in stories will get deleted. If you want a smut-filled romp, you need to find another story to read.

Chapter 14

Shifting around on the bench at the kitchen table, Harry crossed his legs on the bench as he paid attention to what Lucius was talking about while highlighting portions of the text book they were using. That still wasn't easy, as the shaking affected what he was doing with it, but he was managing. It was far easier than trying to take notes, that's for sure! He either had to do that manually, something that was still mostly unreadable, or with the dict-o-quill, something that was flat out confusing when you were trying to listen as well. At least this way he would know what to pay attention to for the tests Lucius devised.

So far, this was about his favorite of the new topics. It was actually fascinating to read about how differently Muggles and Wizards investigated crimes. Lucius, too, seemed to find it just as intriguing and was quite enthused about teaching it. Much to Harry's surprise, he was a good teacher as well. He knew going in that Lucius didn't know this part of History, but was doing an excellent job of getting across what was in the books. And if it was something neither of them understood or needed to look further into, they looked it up together. He found that approach something that helped make what they were working with stick better.

While he wasn't close to being caught up to where Draco was with school, he was doing better. The decrease in trembling helped, a lot. He was at least able to start pressing on to newer areas while he worked with some troublesome spots that what remained of the tremors caused. It was at least a step in the right direction. They were also pressing on with the newest subjects. When it came to Spellcrafting, that was still theory. From what he was told, they wouldn't get into the practical for a while. Sirius told him Snape wanted to make sure he was caught up enough with the other bits he needed so they wouldn't have a problem, something that was fine with him. They were also taking on a couple odd areas with him as well.

For a half an hour a day, Lucius, Sirius or Remus were working with him when it came to his new cane. It had finally arrived and he needed to practice drawing his wand from it while still holding on to the thing for balance. Though he did fine standing still most times, when he was tired he continued to have problems. It was best that he learned to draw correctly, especially if he had to defend himself. At this point, the fact that he had a cane didn't bother him much. He realized that he had to have it unless he wanted to end up falling. It also helped that the person that crafted it did a wonderful job. Unlike a standard cane, it was elaborately carved with a handle that was a lion's body. The golden lion also moved and acted like it roared, something he thought was brilliant. Part of him realized that he wouldn’t like it after a while if he had to keep using the thing, as he would stand out, but he would deal for now.

Narcissa had also worked with him a couple of times on getting to that 'in between' place to see if he couldn't work with what he had. He hadn't fully succeeded, but he found he could edge towards it. Though he didn't say it, he thought the reason he hadn't managed more in that area was that he didn't really want this 'gift' and was uncomfortable with it. It was his thought that it would just take more time for him to get used to it and accept that it probably wouldn't go away. For now, he'd work a bit, but wasn't going to put too much effort into it. There were other subjects that needed his attention more and he planned to focus there.

Looking over at where they were in the books, Lucius nodded, “I think we're at a good place to stop for the day. I say we break off.”

Making sure he had the last of what he needed to mark highlighted, Harry nodded then shut the book and pushed it aside. Picking up his butterbeer, he took a sip then said, “We seem to be going pretty good with this.”

“We are,” Lucius admitted with a firm nod. “Quite well, actually. We are in fact well beyond where I planned to have us at this point. I'm going to start looking into how to go about writing essays for you so we can keep pressing forward. We're still not sure how to go about that as it would take far too long to do it with the dict-o-quill. I assume that will have to do with someone else writing them out for you while you look up what you need to. We'll see. I’m sure we'll come up with something, Harry.”

Nodding, Harry was about to say something when the door opened. He assumed it was Sirius or Remus coming in with Draco, as they were working with Draco with Potions and were probably done, but he was surprised to see Mr. Weasley coming in. “Hey, Mr. Weasley,” he said, smiling at him.

In a wonderful mood, Arthur came over and sat down by Harry then said hello. Smiling bigger, he said, “I have a surprise for you, Harry.”

“What's that?” Harry asked, bewildered as he didn't have any idea what it might be.

Producing the letter he just picked up from Arabella, he handed it over to Harry and explained, “I was asked to pass this along to you.” Then he waited, still smiling.

Taking the letter, wondering who it was from as all those that came from who he knew in the castle were delivered by Snape usually, Harry opened it then began to read. As he did, he began to grin. “It's from Dudley?” He finally asked, looking at Mr. Weasley.

“It is,” Arthur assured him with a nod, still smiling. “I went over earlier in the week and talked to him after Arabella contacted Albus. He wanted to know how you were.”

“This is great!” Harry grinned bigger, nodding as he reread the letter.

Reaching out and patting Harry on the arm, Arthur told him, “We didn't tell you because we wanted it to be a surprise. What we'll do is this—you can write back. I'll pick them up and send them to Arabella then she'll get them to Dudley.”

“I'll do that,” Harry said, still grinning as he looked at the letter. This was a complete and utter shock to him, but one he loved. Of course, he wondered what brought on the change in his cousin, but wasn't going to question it too much. It was wonderful so there was no reason to question it.

“Once you’ve been writing for a while, we're going to see about bring him over for a visit,” Arthur told him, smiling even bigger. “He asked to see you, so we're going to see what we can manage at some point. It'll just take time.”

“This is--” Harry said, shaking his head, unable to stop smiling. “I'd like that,” he said, nodding.

Reaching out and patting Harry's leg, Lucius said, “This is good, Harry.”

“It is!” Harry said. Sobering up, he asked, “Does he know what happened and what's wrong with me?”

“I've filled him in,” Arthur assured him. “Well, mostly. He's aware you have challenges now. I don't think it'll matter, Harry.”

“Good. I don't want him to get a shock,” Harry said, relieved.

“Everyone can make sure to prepare him for what you now deal with,” Lucius told him. “That way he doesn't get a huge start.”

“Yeah, that might be for the best,” Harry sighed. He hadn't thought of that end and didn't want to unnerve him.

“Nothing at all to worry about,” Arthur assured him. “Arabella and I will make very sure he's aware of what's going on so he doesn't get a shock then upset by it. You worry about yourself and not what others might think.”

Nodding to let them know he heard, Harry read the letter again, grinning once more. He never thought this would happen and adored it! For sure, he would sit down and write Dudley back. Yeah, this was great!

Grinning himself as he read the letter from Dudley, Sirius said, “Yeah, this is good! We'll figure out some way to get him over here at some point. It'll just take time. And we'll have to be careful about your aunt and uncle not finding out.” Passing the letter back to his still grinning godson, Sirius told him, “Just write and Arthur will handle the rest. We'll press on as it presents.”

“I will,” Harry told him, grinning himself.

Continuing on, Sirius said, “Alright, we're going good. We have Draco caught up with what he needs. That's good. We can press on like normal and I'm sure we're going to have him ahead of what they're doing in school soon, actually.”

“That can only help if we run into problems,” Lucius said, pleased with what he was hearing. “As we have the schedule of what they're doing, we're fine. We can always cover plenty of other areas if we get too far ahead. Shan't be a problem.”

“Or Draco can take a break and we'll get Harry caught up,” Remus suggested. “Either way works. I'm sure there are plenty of spells and whatnot we can take on if that's the case.”

“Once we start with Spellcrafting, I'm sure we can come up with plenty to work with and invent.” Sirius said, nodding.

“That could be fun to play with,” Lucius said with a smirk. “I'm actually looking forward to taking that part on.”

“I think we all are,” Remus admitted with a smile and nod.

“Alright, what else do we have to worry about this week?” Sirius asked, looking around. “I don't think we need to worry about another meeting for a week or so. Just the normal with people in and out.”

“Not much as far as I can tell,” Remus said, honestly. “Most are planning to leave us alone so we can deal with all we have on our plates. I think they realize how much we have to work with when it comes to both Harry and Draco, so they're tending to leave us alone unless something comes up or we have to know about it. The thought seems to be that we have enough projects to work on that having tons of people around won't assist with anything and will just cause us problems. Which is good.”

“It is,” Narcissa admitted. “It's far less stressful with us being able to follow a routine than being bombarded.”

“Let me ask this, Harry,” Remus started. When he saw Harry look at him, he asked, “Do you think you're keeping up well enough to take on more classes and work? Or do you need more time before you do that?”

Thinking it over, looking down at the table, Harry then said, “I think I can take on a bit more. I'm having problems with some areas, of course, but nothing that'll stop me from picking up more. The tired part is getting better and I’m having problems with some areas, of course, but nothing that will stop me from picking up more.”

“Good. I think we need to step up that end then and see if we can't get you further caught up. I think we're through the worst with the trembling as you're adjusting better.” Remus nodded, pleased with this.

“We are trying to work something out with the essays,” Lucius said, looking around before explaining the issue they talked about before. “We need to come up with some way to take that on. The dict-o-quill is out for such an endeavor. That would take Harry forever.”

“We'll assign one of us to write the essays while Harry goes through and tells us what to put in it and how to word it. That should fix the issue.” Sirius suggested, looking around.

“We'll do that. I'm just going to say that we do this more verbally than essay form. That might work for Draco as well. We just don't have the books here that we need for some of what we're doing.” Remus nodded.

“We'll get together and come up with something,” Lucius said, pleased with this. Pressing on, he began to ask about what they wanted to push more with Harry to get a better feel for what they would be working with.

Seated, cross-legged, on the chair at the desk in the room he and Draco were using for various areas of their schoolwork, Harry was reading through the next chapter in the History book while Draco worked on some kind of essay for Potions. Shifting around as he read, he sighed. It wasn't that this was boring, more that he was getting a bit tired. That always made what he was doing a struggle.

Glancing at Potter, as one of the things that he was supposed to do while they were alone was to keep an eye out for anything odd, he asked, after seeing him look like he was fidgeting, “Everything alright, Potter?”

“Fine, just getting tired,” Harry said, shoving the book away, stretching then rubbing his eyes.

“Take a break then. No hurry with any of this bit.” Draco schooled, going back to what he was doing. This was normal anymore, so he knew what to do. Harry got tired a lot, so it wasn't anything to worry about.

“Yeah, I think I need to,” Harry sighed, shaking his head. This could get a bit frustrating still as he was used to being able to press on as he wanted, but he was dealing with it. Reaching out, he picked up the letter from Ginny that he had to answer yet. Brow furrowed as he read through it, he sighed then said, “When you take a break, I need you to read something for me and see what you think.”

“What is it?” Draco asked as he glanced at the parchment Potter was holding.

“This letter,” Harry shook his head, giving an internal sigh over what was in it.

Now interested, Draco leaned over to get a better look then asked, “What's the topic? Or is that what you don't get?”

“I think she's trying to get something across to me, but I’m not sure,” Harry shrugged. He thought, maybe, he knew what she was going for, but wanted confirmation before he had to figure out a way to deal with it.

Intrigued, Draco held out his hand for the letter. When Harry handed it over, he read it quickly. Chuckling when he finished, as he started another read through, he said, “She's trying to get something across to you, that's for sure.”

Afraid of that, Harry slumped then asked, “You picking up the crush thing? Or am I reading too much into it?”

“You're not,” Draco grinned, shaking his head. “She has a bad case for you from the sound of it.”

“That's what I was afraid of,” Harry groaned, head dropping back and eyes sliding shut. Now he had to figure out how to handle this before it grew worse. As he hadn't had to handle something like this before, he was rather clueless how to shut it down before it went much further.

Both eyebrows going up, Draco looked at Potter and asked, tone incredulous, “Are you blind? She's a good looking one! Most would kill for her to like them that way!”

“I'm not interested,” Harry sighed, shaking his head. “Now I have to figure out how to stop it before it gets worse.”

“Potter, how can you not be interested?” Draco asked, shaking his head as he passed the letter back.

“First, she's the little sister of my best friend. Next comes that the Weasleys are as close as I get to family, besides Sirius. Any relationship with her beyond friends will cause a nightmare because of those two things. And if it ends for whatever reason, whether on good terms or not, it'll make it even worse.” Harry told him with a groan. “And she's just not my type.” That was added almost as an afterthought in a very quiet voice.

Taking that in, Draco thought it over then gave a slow nod. “True. It'll end up a right mess if it ends badly.” However, he thought, maybe, at least from some signals he was getting about this, that the latter reason was more behind the disinterest than the first couple.

“Especially with how Ron is,” Harry told him bluntly, folding his arms over his chest. “Alright, Malfoy, you're better with this bit than I am; how in Merlin's name do I tell her I'm not interested without just coming out and saying it that way? And so she doesn't get hurt over it? I have no clue how to do that.”

“Oh yes, Weasley wouldn't handle this well,” Draco admitted firmly. “Alright, let me think—not sure on this. I've not had to do that before. The only ones I've had to get to back off I had to put it bluntly to. This one is delicate and takes tact. I'm not sure you can manage doing it in a letter without being blunt, honestly.”

“I don't need this,” Harry groused, slumping in his chair. “Can't I just ignore it or something? Maybe she'll give up eventually.”

“That doesn't work,” Draco told him with a sigh himself. “Girls—well, they're different that way. I'm sure she'll just take it as you're being clueless then get more overt. Plenty do that bit. Or she'll end up recruiting others to help her. That will only end up a nightmare.”

“Bollocks,” Harry moaned, shaking his head. “What do you suggest? I have no idea other than telling her outright. And I really don't want to do that. She'll just end up plenty hurt if I do. That and it'll probably set Ron off. I don't need that either.”

Scratching his head as he looked at the letter, Draco thought it over then said, “How about this—for now, ignore it.” Seeing Potter about to say something, he shook his head, “Only for now. Pretend you don't get it. That will buy us some time so we can come up with something that might help. I don't know what, though, as I've not had to go about it this way. We might have to recruit help to manage this one. Sirius would be a good one to go to for this. I'm sure he'd have some good advice. If not, he might at least have some suggestions we can use. We'll come up with something, don't worry. I just don't know what yet. Girls—they're odd and hard to deal with.”

“Alright, I'll go with that. If it grows worse, we need to come up with something, Malfoy! This can't go on. I'm sure if it does, it's just going to end up harder than it is now.” Harry said with a sigh.

“I'm sure it will too. Not to worry, we'll find some way to handle it. We just need some time to manage that.” Draco assured him with a firm nod. Nudging Potter, he asked, grinning just a little sheepishly, “You wouldn't object if I gave it a shot with her, would you? She's a good looking one!”

“Have at it,” Harry chuckled. “Just be careful of Ron is all. You know him and his temper.”

“I'll tread lightly,” Draco assured him firmly with a nod. “Maybe if I start making hints, she'll focus on me instead. I don't know, though.”

“Somehow I don't think that'll work. My life can't be that easy,” Harry said with a dry chuckle and shake of his head.

“Let me lay the foundation for it,” Draco grinned, happy with this. Ginny Weasley was someone he really did like, a lot. For more reasons than the fact that she was good looking. If he had a shot at it, he was going to take it. “Alright, Potter, give it up! What kinds of things does she like? That way I have something to work with here.”

Reaching up to scratch his head, Harry thought about it then said, “Quidditch for sure. She's really into it. I know she has a thing for cats. That and cute fuzzy things. Beyond that, you have me. I've just not paid that much attention. Hermione would have better advice for you in that area than I would.”

“No, not asking Granger,” Draco said with a shake of his head. “At least not yet. We need to get her to back off you before I do that. Once she does, if I can't come up with something I'll go that way. Let's see what we can come up with on your end first. We need that out of the way before I can press on with her.”

“You're mostly on your own there,” Harry told him with a snort. “You probably have more experience than I do. I've just not paid attention to much of it. The one bit I had ended so badly that I don't think you want to have me help you. I'll put in a good word for you once you get it going, but nothing before that.”

“I'll have you do that when I get it moving how I want,” Draco told him firmly. “Alright, just write back like normal and we'll start putting our heads together about how to get you out of the mess. I'll work on my end before then.”

“That I can do,” Harry agreed, pleased to have something in place that was at least starting to deal with this before it became a right nightmare he didn't need.

Standing in the doorway, Sirius listened to the conversation, grinning while he did. This was good. Draco and Harry were trying to get along and interacting in a way that was quite helpful. That made him think that there might not be issues between them that they needed to worry about. No, it wasn't a close friendship, that's for sure, but it was a start. With all of them having to stay in the house most of the time, a good relationship between the two was something they all needed. Well, at least one that was the two tolerating each other and not being nasty.

Slipping away so that they didn't see him, as he only went to check and make sure everything was alright anyway, he thought over some of what Harry said. Especially the part about not being interested. Like Draco, he was sure that was more the reason for not wanting to go there than the Weasleys. Harry could deal with a lot if he truly wanted something. That he had proven in the past, plenty of times. And he had no problems standing up to Ron over some bits. They had all seen that. So, he thought that there was more behind it than what he said.

Thinking it over as he went to finish what he had been taking care of, he wondered if this wasn't the first clue when it came to his godson's sexual leanings. He hoped it was, but would wait a bit longer. Maybe he would figure it out himself and not have to ask.

As he stepped back into the kitchen, he also made a mental note to offer the two some help with Ginny. They knew all of them poked their heads in to check on them from time to time, so he didn't think it would be taken badly. Plus, they probably did need some advice. Yeah, that was a no-win situation, that's for damned sure, and even in the best of circumstances it wouldn't end well. He'd do what he could, though.
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In His Place