Padfoot's Weakness - HP / Marauders time travel

29: Conversations

The twins sat on the couch, facing each other. After a moment of silence, Henrietta sighed and urged, "Go ahead, ask your questions."

Harry smiled sheepishly. "There's just so much I wanna know."

"Yeah, I get that," she chuckled. "Well, before you ask, Lil--I mean, Mom and Dad were awesome. Dad got her a puppy for Christmas."

"Really?" Harry laughed.

"Yeah!" Henrietta giggled. "And when Dad did it, first he pulled out a leash and Sirius said 'kinky' and Mom looked soooo suspicious and disapproving."

Harry burst into laughter. It didn't take long, though, for him to quiet down and ask the question she had been anticipating.

"What happened between you and Sirius?" Yup, there it was.

Henrietta smiled awkwardly. "Well, you already know we got together 'cause of matching Patronuses."

"Yeah, but..." He paused. "I mean, did you know you'd like him before you went back in time?"

Henrietta frowned at his vocabulary. "Harry, I don't just 'like' him. I love him."

The raven-haired boy almost seemed to wince. "Yeah... but isn't it weird?"

"No, because I don't worry about it, and neither does he," Henrietta answered lightly. "We love each other and it doesn't matter how young or old I am, or whether he's my Godfather or not."

Harry shrugged wordlessly. "It's just... I love Sirius too, as a Godfather, but I just don't know him all that well... what if he's..."

The girl's eyebrows shot up when she realized what he was implying. "Harry, he's not taking advantage of me!"

"No, I know! But I mean--"

"Harry, he loves me. And I love him. If you had been there in 1976, you'd see just how much we love each other," she interrupted.

"Okay, okay, but just listen for a second!" Harry huffed. "So I understand, he loved you in the past. But what if he got over you? And now that you're back, you're just convenient?"

Silence followed his words. Henrietta stared at him for a long moment, eyes wide and gleaming with hurt. "You... you're... I don't even know how to reply to that," she whispered painfully. 

"I didn't mean to hurt you, but what if it's true?" the other twin insisted.

"But it's not!" she growled. "Harry, before I went back in time, you know what he said to me?" He mutely shook his head. "He shouted at me, not knowing I was Henrietta, about how he waited for years. He waited for me to come back to him." When her brother opened his mouth to speak, she continued, "Back before fifth year, when we were at 12 Grimmauld Place, he would mention Renley all the time. He said I reminded him of her, and that it was a good thing. Neither of us knew the truth."

Harry's eyes drifted down, guilt swimming in them. "I'm sorry, Hen. It's just... weird, I guess. It's hard for me to understand. I'm trying to be open minded, but it's hard sometimes. Hermione makes it look so easy, and Ron just doesn't really care. But you're my sister, and you've been through so much, and I just want to be sure that you're okay."

Henrietta took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. Once she exhaled, she responded, "It's okay, I get it. But just... try harder, okay? Sirius is good. You know that."

"Yeah, I do," Harry sighed.  Henrietta placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to glance back up. She smiled reassuringly, and he returned it. "So, new question. What was Remus like? Was he involved in the pranks?"