Live Forever

6: Talk Tonight - Part 4

Sirius laughed. "Well when you put it that way it sounds really bad. And in my defense, I'm in a bit of a time crunch. Brooding teenager with the fate of the world on his shoulders and all that..."

David laughed in return. "I have no idea what you should say to him but the fact that you were concerned enough to ask for advice means you're on the right track."

"That's it?" Sirius asked, "A bit underwhelming if I'm being honest."

"I can see why Hermione finds you aggravating sometimes."

"Wait, wh-"

"Here it is, the secret to parenting, are you ready?" David interrupted, waiting for Sirius' nod before continuing.

"The older your kids get the less it becomes about being their parent and more about being their friend. When they're infants and you're changing their nappies and having to feed them every few hours, that's proper parenting. When they get older then you should be their friend.

"For fuc-"

"Let me finish," David snapped in a very Hermione-esque way and Sirius immediately quieted.

"The key is you have to be the super responsible friend that doesn't go along with the stupid friend's ideas. And your job is to convince Harry not to be or listen to the stupid friend."

"I knew there would be a catch," Sirius muttered.

"I'm guessing you were the stupid friend when you were younger?

"You have no idea."

"Well, those days are over. You need to be the serious friend now and if Harry doesn't listen to your advice and does something stupid, then you get to tell him how stupid he was and then be the parent and ground him. There's one more bit, and from what I've heard this may be the most difficult part for you. You can't be stupid anymore...if you don't practice what you preach you're finished."

The advice made sense. His first thoughts were of Remus in their younger years. He was by far the most serious of the group but unfortunately, he didn't have the conviction to talk them out of anything. Suddenly he realized he had the perfect role model. James Potter had become the serious friend in sixth year and had grown exponentially into the role during their seventh year. Sirius thought briefly about his last horribly stupid and selfish act and how it had profoundly affected Harry...James's son...Lily's son. He could do this. He had to do this.

"Thanks" he answered sincerely. He was all set to say his goodbyes before David stopped him.

"For what it's worth I think you are selling yourself short. Hermione said you've really helped Harry over the last month. She even mentioned how much you helped her during Harry's hearing. The way she was smiling when she told me about your chess match, it made me a bit jealous if I'm being honest."

Sirius scoffed. "I just tried to be a...friend."

David laughed and Sirius realized that there was another fifteen-year-old at Grimmauld who desperately needed to talk to their parents, but was probably too afraid or unwilling to admit it. "Is Jane still around?" he asked.

"I'm here," Jane answered immediately and Sirius fought the urge to laugh. He should have known she'd be listening in on their conversation. Lily would have done the same thing.

"Stand by," he requested as he quickly made his way back to Hermione's room.

She was now at her desk, poring over the book he'd provided. Despite the fact that he'd left less than thirty minutes prior she'd already managed to fill a foot of parchment with notes. He made a mental note to scour the library once he'd finished talking to Harry for any other books on the Mind Arts...he should probably have Minerva do the same with the Hogwarts library.

Hermione was so engrossed in her reading that she didn't realize he had entered the room. She was slightly startled when he thrust the mirror in front of her.

"Talk to your parents," he commanded.

"Sirius!" she whispered urgently as she grabbed the mirror and placed it face down on the desk. "I can't share the prophecy with my parents! It's too risky!"

"It's my job to help Harry right now and it's your parents' job to help you. They want to help. Let them."

"I'm fine," Hermione lied horribly, "besides it doesn't matter. We need to help Harry."

"It does matter, Janey," Sirius replied in an effort to purposely annoy the girl. It worked spectacularly.

"Only my parents are allowed to call me that," she snapped in a hiss.

"Then let them," he implored, gesturing toward the mirror. "Take a break from your reading and talk to your mum and dad. I've already supplied the basics of what's going on- "

He fought the urge to laugh at the angry glare the girl shot him.

"Don't give me that look! I didn't tell them anything specific...just that Harry had some awful shit dropped on him and that you're worried about it. And I promise, if you decide that I spilled too much then I will personally Fidelius their house to keep them out of danger."

The last line earned him a small grin before Hermione glanced at the mirror. "You shouldn't use that sort of language in front of me, and you know you're not meant to leave the house...but thank you."

"You're welcome," he replied as he picked up the mirror and placed it back in her hands. "Talk to them or I will ensure everyone in this house will be calling you Janey by nightfall."

That earned a small laugh and he had the fleeting thought that maybe he wasn't as bad at this sort of thing as he'd suspected. Sirius waved goodbye and headed down the hall. He'd sorted out exactly what to say based on David's advice and it was time to find out how really not bad he was.