So I started this chapter about a month ago but then exams decided to do what exams do best and get in the way. Either way, I'm back and I'm seriously excited to release this next chapter, your comments have really motivated me to continue working on it and updating so I really hope you all enjoy it :)

In the meanwhile, I've started an art Instagram! I enjoy drawing and painting and I post on a daily basis and would love if you guys checked it out mari_daily_art :)

Emma and Daniel Granger were beginning to worry. Hermione hadn't left her room at all for the past two days. While this wasn't completely out of character, often before she had left for Hogwarts she had spent whole weeks absorbing book after book, rarely leaving her room, and even then it would be for a glass of water. Still, she would be smiling and say her 'good mornings' and 'goodnights', but this... this was different.

When she had initially returned from her first year at Hogwarts, of course, they were glad to see her as they had missed her greatly; her room had seemed ominously empty for the past few months since Christmas and seeing their daughter again had been the main thing on their mind. The first day of her arrival she had been so bubbly, carrying that same energy that she'd surprisingly shown through Christmas. She'd spent most of her time with her parents, helping around the house as much as she could, listening to her father tell the same ridiculous stories of his own childhood, urging the two of them to play with her or even just spend time doing things she had previously found excessively dull. It seemed that spending just 9 months away from her parents had caused her to appreciate them all the more. But now she'd locked herself away.

Every time they came up to check on her she just appeared to be prodding at a black band at her wrist, her books opened yet unread scattered across her desk. Her hair seemed to have been left untouched as the mane basically seemed to engulf her face and she didn't seem to be getting much sleep. The most conversation they had with her was the occasional yes or no in response to whether or not she was hungry.

Emma was carrying up a plate of toast and orange juice for Hermione's breakfast; it felt like serving a prison inmate though no one had locked her up but herself. It felt almost futile. The food tended to remain untouched and if this continued for much longer, she would have to find some way to intervene.

As she opened the door she was suddenly ambushed by her daughter running into her arms. "He did it! He's out!" Mrs Granger had no idea what had perked her daughter up so much but seeing her smile so much brought a smile to her own face, though she couldn't help but wonder what she'd meant.

Harry felt pretty bad. He'd been so caught up in spending time with Sirius, helping him collect his few belongings, returning to Grimmauld Place, trying to catch up with his godfather as much as possible that he'd completely forgot to tell Hermione the results of the trial. Neither of them had bothered in a subscription to the Daily Prophet, who needs news when you've already lived through it yourself? The fact that she had responded almost as soon as he told her the news immediately showed that she'd been waiting to find out the outcome eagerly and not hearing anything must have worried her out of her wits.

He was currently sat in the room Sirius had provided for him. Fairly large and though rather dark, still a somewhat nice room to stay in. The first couple of days in Grimmauld Place had been spent tearing down curtains, silencing the painting of Sirius' mother and dusting... lots and lots of dusting. The house was cleaned surprisingly quickly and though reluctant, Kreacher had been the largest help in creating a livable abode. The tension between Kreacher and Sirius was more than palpable but at the very least, Harry had managed to convince him to stop insulting the elf quite so often.

Though it had only been two days, the two of them were very comfortable with each other. Sirius was still adjusting to life outside of a cell but he was quickly getting used to a life of brighter lights and nicer foods, and Harry was glad to be spending time with him again.

Sirius had personally vowed to take custody of Harry and the Dursely's weren't complaining. Harry had refused to go and collect any of his belongings, pretty much everything had fit into his trunk for school and he really couldn't think of anything he'd miss. He was somewhat disappointed, he had started to slowly rectify things with Petunia and Dudley in the previous timeline but it had been a long process and once he was 'dead' he had no idea what even happened to them. He wasn't sure if he could go through that again, especially not at '11'.

It was fine though. Sirius was all the family he needed and they were both spoiling each other. Sirius had huge shopping trips planned, going everywhere they could, enjoying as much of his freedom with his godson as he could. Harry, on the other hand, found fun in teaching Sirius basic skills. Growing up in a household with a house-elf, before going on to a school that also had house-elves and then spending barely a year as an independent man, Sirius had never had the chance to learn how to cook, so while Kreacher was very much in charge of cleaning, as he demanded he should be, Harry spent a good portion of each day teaching Sirius to cook. As a child, he'd spent a lot of time cooking for the Dursley's and as a fugitive in his last life, he'd learnt quite a few tricks for making quick and filling meals. They were happy together. However, they both still felt something was missing.

Harry knew what it was. Remus. He'd missed Remus like hell, but had no idea where he was until his third year. Sirius knew it too, though of course, he didn't expect Harry to know anything about the man and wasn't sure of where to start when it came to finding him either. They'd seen him at the trial but then he seemed to have just disappeared.

Though neither of the two of them knew it, they luckily wouldn't have to look far to find him.

Dumbledore sat in his office not completely sure of how to feel. He was annoyed that Sirius had been exonerated from his crimes, it undermined his authority and didn't need people questioning why he hadn't stepped in for the man back when he was first arrested. To top it all off, he was removing Harry from his muggle relatives and clearly wasn't on the best of terms with the Headmaster. Albus needed to be careful, if Harry was too heavily influenced by his godfather, he may be less inclined to listen to the wisdom of Dumbledore, and that could have grave consequences.

There was the Weasley family to consider also. Molly and Arthur were still being held in the Ministry and now Pettigrew had been found guilty, it wouldn't be surprising if they too received some reprimand. Though of course, Albus was sure he could sway the trial. He'd been caught unaware at Sirius' trial and had been expecting it to be quick and simple with an easy guilty verdict. Though now he thought about it clearly, that had always been unlikely. He'd assumed it wouldn't be an actual trial, just something that gave Sirius an official 'Guilty' stamp on his record and the world could continue as normal. Instead, here he was, completely confused by how this could affect his plans. He wouldn't have to deal with issues like this again. He'd have the Weasley's let off with something light, a fine or community service or something similar, and pay it off himself. Losing them would be losing a valuable asset and he couldn't allow that to happen.

Since the trial of Sirius Black, and the bombardment of public outcry at his mistreatment, Dumbledore had been endlessly exhausted. The trial of the Weasley parents was next week, he would work up his energy and become the saviour once again. But for now, he returned to his chamber for an early night.

The Weasley children were more or less enjoying themselves at home. Charlie and Bill could cook relatively well and not having their overbearing mother around was a nice break for the group, though there was some tension among the older siblings, worried about their parents' state.

Mrs Weasely, on the other hand, was enjoying absolutely nothing. While house arrest had been no fun, sitting in a dank cell with her husband was infinitely worse. Their trial wasn't for another week and she hadn't even done anything to condone this stay. Her dopey husband seemed to just sleep and sleep, complaining of headaches in his waking hours, which she couldn't cure. Medics among the ministry had visited him a few times and offered him pain relief, which unfortunately for Molly seemed to work. If this continued, the potion would eventually leave his system. He'd probably still love her, he had prior to her administering the potion, but he probably wouldn't be quite so docile, and that could get in the way of her plans.

She and Dumbledore had hoped to somehow 'rescue' Harry from his living conditions. Having him spend the summer with her family would've helped her begin forming bonds between him and her small tribe. He'd be introduced to his future wife and brothers-in-laws and he'd be able to look to her as a mother figure. It would've been so simple. But no, of course, it wouldn't work that way. Instead, she was harbouring a criminal who had essentially killed his parents. If the trial didn't go smoothly, he'd probably hate her and her children. And now that bloody Sirius Black was probably going to become his guardian. Annoyed as she often was in this musty cell of hers, she threw herself onto the small bed she'd been provided with and turned in for the night.

"Paris?"

"Yes."

"Venice?"

"Definitely."

"What about Canada?"

"Add it to the list!" Harry said with a smile. Sirius wanted to go anywhere and everywhere with the boy before school started again. The two had both experienced different forms of imprisonment and exploring the world would be the best way to experience their freedom together. Just as Harry was about to start listing off places, there was a knock at the door. The two had been bombarded with the press for the past couple of days, journalists wanting interviews and photographers wanting pictures. The Daily Prophet was endlessly plastered with pictures of them, those who could find comfort in each other after losing so much. Though they had gotten slightly used to the press, they'd never found anyone who was polite enough to knock. Sirius left the room to go and answer the door.

Harry could hear some muffled conversation and laughter, curious to find out who had arrived, he walked through to the hallway that led to the front door.

"And this must be Harry." He looked nearly exactly as Harry remembered him, still rather scruffy but smiling so brightly that he looked to be the richest man on earth.

Remus Lupin, upon hearing the outcome of the trial had wanted to immediately run over to his old friend, Sirius. However, with the notoriety of the case being so high, too many members of the public and press had blocked his path and he'd had to wait a few days for things to calm down. Of course, the most obvious place to go had been Grimmauld Place and after collecting his things he immediately headed for it. Seeing both his old best friend and the boy he thought of as a son nearly brought him to tears, and as Sirius invited him inside, he felt a level of happiness that he really hadn't felt in a very long time.

God, I really hope that wasn't a bad ending. But here is where we end Year One! It's been really fun to write and I 100% plan on writing the other years soon, but for now I think I can consider this book complete. I really hope you guys have enjoyed reading, please review letting me know what you think, I really do appreciate it! While you wait, do check out my Instagram mari_daily_art I'd love some support there too! Thank you so much for coming on this ride with me! Maybe I'll come back and edit a few things, most likely this ending as I'm not sure I'm 100% happy with it, but I hope you guys are as excited as I am for Year 2 of Running xx