The boys heard a faint huff from upstairs. Sirius laughed heartily with Harry and Draco, and the Weasley twins hesitantly joined in.
'That's more like it,' Sirius said with an approving grin. 'I hear that you boys think yourselves quite the mischief-makers. I look forward to seeing a bit of that over the holiday.' He looked over his shoulder to where Mopsy was dusting a portrait of old Sir Sagittarius. 'Mopsy, kindly escort Messrs Fred and George Weasley to their rooms. They will be our guests here for the next two weeks, and you are to see that all their needs are fulfilled.'
'Yes, Master,' Mopsy replied, and led Fred and George upstairs.
'As for you, Draco,' Sirius continued, 'your mum is eager for you to come home as soon as possible. We'll see you at Grimmauld Place tomorrow, and then we'll all come over to Malfoy Manor on Christmas Day.'
Draco nodded. 'Thanks, Uncle Sirius. See you, Aries.'
The blond boy headed for the drawing room, and moments later vanished through the fireplace.
'It's good to have you home, Harry,' Sirius said once Draco had gone. 'I've missed you. It's just not the same with only Aunt Cassie and the Squibs to keep me company.'
Harry smirked. 'It seems like you and Uncle Remus have been keeping yourselves busy. What happened to that leg?'
'Werewolves have extraordinarily powerful jaws,' Sirius replied with a wince. 'Let me give you a bit of fatherly advice: No matter how good an idea it seems at the time, never try to sneak up and surprise a werewolf, even if you're a giant black dog and the said werewolf's best friend. You might just end up with a shattered leg for your trouble.'
Harry raised his eyebrows. 'A shattered leg?'
'It hurt like hell to have it mended, let me tell you,' Sirius replied. 'I should be all right by Christmas, though, and your granddad and I'll still have plenty of time to trounce you at Quidditch.'
'Dream on, old man,' Harry retorted.
Just then, the Weasley twins came sliding down the banister, one after another.
'I'm glad to see you boys are feeling more at home,' Sirius said wryly.
'Well, we heard it mentioned and decided we couldn't resist,' Fred replied.
'Are your rooms satisfactory?' Sirius asked.
George snorted. 'Does the sun let off a bit of light? I've never seen anything so grand in my entire life.'
'You should see Dad's suite,' Harry told him. 'It's like a whole flat all to itself.'
Sirius shrugged. 'Being me has its privileges. Who's up for a game of Exploding Snap?'
Fred and George grinned at each other. Maybe this hadn't been such a bad idea after all.
.....
The twins, as it turned out, had a marvellous Christmas. Abraxas Malfoy welcomed them heartily to Malfoy Manor, and they received gifts from Sirius and Abraxas in addition to the ones from their family and friends. Sirius gave George a brand-new professional-quality Beater's bat, but he gave Fred an old, worn-looking one.
'That's my lucky bat,' Sirius explained in response to Fred's curious expression. 'We won every game I played with it.'
Fred looked stunned. 'Blimey! Thanks, Sirius.'
'It's yours on the condition that you pass it on to your successor as Gryffindor Beater,' Sirius said solemnly. 'I want its magic to continue on to the next generation. I'd give it to Harry or Draco, but they're rubbish Beaters. I think it would take more than a lucky bat to win any game with them Beating.'
Harry and Draco simultaneously hit Sirius with a Tickling Hex, and soon the tall man was rolling on the floor, laughing.
'How can you do that outside of school?' George demanded. 'Won't you two get in trouble with the Ministry?'
'Don't be ridiculous,' Cassiopeia sniffed. 'The Trace can only detect where magic was done, not who did it.'
'In a magical home, there's no way the Ministry can figure out that an underage wizard has done magic,' Narcissa explained.
The twins looked as though that were the best present they could possibly have received. They pulled out their wands, and soon the Manor's drawing room erupted in a hex war. Lucius and the ladies excused themselves, but Abraxas and Sirius joined in eagerly. Sirius in particular took full advantage of his new freedom from the walking chair to dodge and twirl, and by dinnertime, he was the undisputed champion.
'Dad always wins hex wars,' Harry explained to the twins on their way to the dining room.
'It's because I am such a great and fearsome wizard,' Sirius boasted, his festive dress robes swishing as he swept past them.
Harry grinned mischievously and tried out a nonverbal spell James had taught him. Soon Sirius was dangling in the air from his foot, his long hair dragging on the floor. The twins and Draco burst out laughing.
'What were you saying, Dad?' Harry taunted.
Sirius didn't blink. He flicked his wand and Transfigured Harry into a large gourd. Harry's spell broke, and Sirius barely managed to Conjure a large pile of fluffy pillows before he landed on the floor. The twins and Draco applauded. Sirius jumped to his feet and gave a little bow before Vanishing the pillows and picking up the Harry-gourd.
'I like you much better this way,' he said with a grin. 'I think I shall leave you like this until after dinner. On the other hand...'
Sirius dropped the gourd. The twins cried out in shock, but Sirius only flicked his wand, and Harry returned to normal before he could splatter all over the floor. Instead he ended up with only a sore bottom. Sirius reached down his hand and helped Harry up.
He chuckled. 'You were saying?'
Harry only rolled his eyes. 'Just you wait, Dad. I'll get you one day.'
Sirius tousled Harry's hair. 'I'm sure you will. But until that day comes, I'm going to savour every moment.'
.....
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