Growing up Pureblooded

Muggle Day

A couple of days before the New Year Sirius woke Aries very early and took him out for a spin on his brand-new motorcycle. Aries rode pillion and enjoyed himself immensely, though he rather wished Sirius would have worn a helmet, if only so that his long hair wouldn't fly into Aries's face.

They headed straight out of the city and into the country, where they zipped along small roads with utter abandon. Sirius had declared the day a "Muggle day," which meant no magic allowed. Of course, this hardly stopped him from Confunding a few policemen, but fortunately neither he nor Aries was much inclined towards a legalistic, Pharisaical enforcement of rules, even their own.

They stopped for lunch at a Muggle pub where Sirius ordered them both steak and chips, as well as a pint of ale for himself and a soft drink for Aries. "Prongs and I used to come here all the time with Moony and...er, with Moony," he explained to Aries. "This is where Prongs told us he was going to marry Lily, and it's also where he asked a certain devilishly-handsome young wizard to be godfather to his son." Aries grinned. "I'm glad he did."

Sirius reached across the table and ruffled the boy's hair. "Thanks for coming with me this morning," he said. "I needed to get out for a bit." "Perfectly understandable," Aries replied. "It could be worse, though. Aunt Cassie and Aunt Druella could actually be staying in the same house year-round." "Good Lord!" Sirius exclaimed in horror. "What a nightmare that would be. There was more than enough cleaning-up to do after their little tiff on Christmas Day." "When are they installing the new wall?" Aries asked, popping a chip into his mouth. "The Tuesday after you go back to school." Sirius replied downheartedly. "Is there anything you can do about the vase?" Aries questioned his father.

Sirius sighed. "No. It's irreparably smashed. It was a gift from Suleiman the Magnificent too. I think that was actually the last Muggle-made family heirloom we had." "I'm surprised Grandmother kept it," Aries replied with a smirk. "Well, Muggle-made or not it was a gift from the Ottoman sultan," Sirius pointed out. "One doesn't just throw away things like that." He growled. "Though apparently it's perfectly acceptable to levitate them in front of oneself just to block a simple Blasting Curse. Damn Druella." "Did she even apologize?" Aries wondered outloud.

Sirius snorted. "Her? Never." He mimicked Druella's high-pitched, nasal whine. "It was Cassiopeia's own wretched fault for casting the Blasting Curse in the first place." Aries rolled his eyes. "Figures. Has any Rosier ever apologized for anything?" "Not likely," Sirius snarled, cutting into his steak with gusto. "I feel sorry for Draco," Harry said. "I mean, the old cow's his grandmother."

Sirius chuckled. "It could be worse. Remember, she used to live at Malfoy Manor." "I remember," Aries said with a groan. "Even Granddad used to go out of his way to avoid running into her – in his own bloody house!" "Speaking of Granddad," Sirius began. "He told me you've been undertaking a bit of research in the Restricted Section." Harry nodded and took a sip of his soft drink. "That's right. I want to train to fight Riddle." "Well, I hope you won't ever be close enough to him to have to fight him again," Sirius said with a smile. "All the same, I think it's a wise precaution for you to take. I've asked Moony to help you and Draco train this term." Aries's face fell. "Thanks, Dad," he forced himself to reply. "That's great."

Sirius was too absorbed in his steak to notice the shift in Harry's expression. "I thought you'd enjoy that bit of news," he said cheerfully. "Moony's a great fighter, and a brilliant teacher. You and Draco will learn loads from him." "I'm sure we will, Dad," Aries said truthfully, and took another bite of steak.