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Chapter Text

“When am I gonna be an uncle?” asked Regulus with such confidence that Sirius thought it was more a threat than a question.

“What?” Sirius said with much confusion. 

“When am I gonna be an uncle?” Regulus repeated.

“I heard you the first time, but what?” Sirius was so confused that his little brother asked him this.

“Come on, Sippy. We all know that you get attached to the kids at the orphanage. Just adopt one already. If it would make you feel any better, I will be willing to be your babysitter whenever you’d like.”

“What about you, huh? Why don’t you adopt one of the kids?” Sirius said, trying to redirect the bizarre conversation they are having right now.

“Nah, I’d rather babysit than have my kids.” 

At that point, Sirius got up and walked out of their kitchen. He grabbed a pillow from the sofa and threw it at his little brother violently, so he dropped his fork and fell on the kitchen tiles. 

“Prick!” 

“Twat!”

And with that, the 2 brothers started to roughhouse with Sirius putting Regulus in a choke hold and messing up his hair. Once they stopped with the rough housing they laid on their living room floor laughing their ass off. This was how they would typically start their day. They both lived in 12 Grimmauld Place. Their parents are long dead, and they had a lot of moments to catch up to be normal brothers. 

They are both happily working at an orphanage that they built with some of their parents' money. They had more than enough to spend happily, as they had enough money to support over 20 generations with a very, very comfortable lifestyle. Which is saying a lot because that was only their parents’ money and not their vaults. Needless to say, they didn’t like the money and tried so hard to get rid of most of it because who needed that much money? They settled on using it for the orphanage and donated a lot to it, toys, books, and more. 

“Can you both get up from the floor?” James asked, wearing his sweatpants and a t-shirt. His hair was a mess of brown curls, and his glasses were slightly tilted. He looked like he had just woken up from a 10-year-long coma. “Sorry to ruin your moment, but you need to get to work. The kids are waiting for you.” 

“AHH! What the fuck Prongs, I didn't even hear you. Right, let's go, Archi, before James gives me another heart attack.” Sirius said as he started getting up, brushed off the ruffles in his hair, and straightened his buttoned-up shirt and slacks. He held a handout for Regulus to grab, and he did. “We will talk about this later, do you understand? I might also have a solution for this.”

“Yeah, let’s just get to the orphanage before Dorcas gets mad again,” Regulus says as he is pulled up and straightens his outfit as well. He had to brush his curls a bit because of Sirius. Regulus always liked shorter hair than Sirius. 

_________

As they reach the doors of the orphanage, they start going over what the kids might want to do today. The front lady greets them and lets them pass into the room behind her that leads to the actual orphanage. They did this as a safety measure for the kids. 

“Good morning, you two,” says Dorcas with a cheerful voice. Her dress is covered in paint and looks like a colorful mess. “The kids wanted to paint while they waited for you to get here. Don’t keep them waiting.”

“Good morning, Dorcas!” they both say as they walk into the main area where the kids play. Regulus goes to the daycare and helps the kids learn about shapes and colors. He also helps the kids learn how to be nice to each other. Sirius goes to the older kids and makes sure that they are being nice to each other and that they are learning actual school material. They had a habit of ditching their classes. 

Sirius then goes down a hall that will lead him to the courtyard of the orphanage. In the center of it is a fountain, while there are trees and bushes surrounding the perimeter of the courtyard. He takes his time walking there with a box he picked up on his way there. It doesn’t take long for him to hear small, rushed footsteps behind him, like someone is trying to sneak up on him.

Sirius placed the box on a nearby bench that was next to the fountain and said loudly. “Wow, I hope that no one takes the carefully placed box on the bench when my back is turned.” Turning his back on the box to look at the water in the fountain, he listened very closely. Then he hears the soft shuffling of feet behind him. Sirius then turns around quickly, shocking the person near the bench. “Got yeah!”

The kid with blue hair is so shocked that he nearly falls back in such shock at being caught red-handed. Sirius giggles when he realizes it's one of his favorite kids. Teddy is standing next to the bench, frozen as if he were still enough, Sirius might not notice him. 

After a few seconds, Sirius speaks up and tells him, “You do know I can see you, right?”

“It’s not fair that you can always tell it's me!” Teddy whines like he is 4 years old, “Hmph.”

“How old are you, Teddy?” 

“I will be 11 in a few months. I just like being dramatic like you.” Hm, that explains it. 

Sirius giggles, and after a while Teddy relaxes and laughs with him. They laugh and giggle for what feels like hours. Then, after a while, Sirius starts getting up and says, “Wanna play tag?” 

To that, Teddy giggles and starts running away. Sirius sighs and jogs up to Teddy so that it doesn’t seem unfair that Teddy catches up to him. Teddy tries to hide behind a tree, but Sirius pretends he can't see him. "Where's Teddy? I could have sworn he was just here."

Teddy giggles and tries to peek out from the tree, but gets confused because he can't find Sirius. When Teddy turns his back from the fountain he sees Sirius there, "Boo!" To that, Teddy shrieks and tries running, but isn't fast enough. Sirius picks him up and carries him back to the fountain and tickles Teddy. So, there they were laughing and coughing from the lack of oxygen. 

“Why don’t you open the box, kid?” Sirius spoke after a while, wiping away tears. As Sirius started getting up, he looked over at Teddy, who was giving the biggest smile that he could muster. In the box, there is a little wooden boat that is crafted out of pure love and with such detail that you can even see inside the captain's cabin. There was also a letter that Sirius is pretty sure Teddy didn’t notice at first. “I know you have a fascination with the ocean, so I made you a small pirate ship so you can put it in the fountain. You can pretend it's the ocean. You can try to see if it floats.”

Teddy had gotten up in a heartbeat and placed the boat in the fountain, and surely enough, it floated. He lets out a high-pitched squeal that could crack glass. Teddy then proceeded to turn around and say a string of, “Thank you, thank you, thank you! It's so amazing and I love it!”

Teddy almost knocks Sirius over by surging forward to hug him. This made Sirius laugh, and it got him thinking that Teddy would fit so well at Grimmauld Place. The kid is already fond of him, and he loves the kid. He could teach Teddy how to make the boats and so much more. He would just need to tell Dorcas, and he would be able to take Teddy home in no time. I mean, he has the money and the space. He will be loved dearly, not only by him but by Regulus and James, who moved in around the same time Walburga and Orion passed away. They had recently gotten a black dog that was named Octavious. There’s no drama in their lives, and everything is relaxed for the most part. I mean, what’s the worst that could happen? It’s not like one of them might go missing or something like that, right? 

“I don’t mean to intrude on your little happy moment, but we need to go home, Sirius.” Regulus rudely interrupts Sirius mid-thought. Sirius needs to start paying attention to his surroundings again. It's becoming an issue and something he needs to pick up again.

“I’ll meet you at the cafe, let me just tell him something first,” Sirius says while Teddy gives him a puzzled look.

“Hurry up because I would like to go take a nap and I can't leave you alone!” Regulus shouted as he was already walking away from the two. Sirius knows deep down that Regulus has abandoned issues and doesn't correct him. The two of them were inseparable. 

“Do you have to go? Why can’t you stay?” Teddy asked, looking like he might cry at the thought of Sirius leaving. This broke Sirius's heart because he hated leaving Teddy each day. 

“I'll be back tomorrow if Dorcas allows me to come back. I will try to be here as much as I can for you. Did you see the letter that was in the box?” Sirius asks, trying to get the box to grab the letter. Playing into his act as Teddy grabs the letter, being confused. 

“Oh, I guess I didn’t see it. Am I able to read it right now?” Teddy asks 

“It’s what you want, Ted, but I want to know your answer to it,” Sirius said as Teddy opened the letter. As Teddy read, he fought the urge to cry. 

The letter goes as this:

Dear Teddy,

I know that you have struggled so much. I know that some people might see you as a troublemaker, but I don't see you like that. I enjoy spending time with you and being able to make you the pirate boats that you love so much. You are the best kid I know, and I love seeing the smile on your face each time I come back. Hopefully, I will have the chance to teach you how to make pirate boats and take them on test runs in the water, maybe we could race each other as well. This leads me to the question I want to ask you. Teddy, I already see you as my kid, and I wanted to know if you wanted that to appear on paper, too. 

Will you let me adopt you, Teddy, and bring you to your forever home?

And with that last part of the letter, Teddy cried. He cried, cried because he felt like he had a chance to go to a home that would love him. All Teddy could do was hug Sirius and tell him, “Yes, I would like to go home with you… Dad.”

When Sirius heard the word dad, he cried silent tears and was happy that we would be able to give Teddy a life out of the orphanage, sadly, where he grew up. Teddy was seen as a troublemaker and had to tragically be separated from his parents because they had died in a robbery gone wrong. He acted out to everyone. Everyone except Sirius, who had changed his lifetime and time again, which made Teddy happier and less stubborn. Teddy hated seeing Sirius leave each day and was told by Dorcas that he cried because he missed Sirius. This time, Sirius would never leave Teddy in the orphanage, ever again. 

“Come on. Let's go tell Dorcas the news so I can bring you home.” Sirius said through happy tears. He guided Teddy up and walked back into the hall of the orphanage.

—------------

The paperwork was boring and lengthy. Dorcas had been over to Grimmauld Place to spend time with Regulus and James. So, she knew Teddy would fit perfectly over there and would be in good hands. She made a note to Sirius each time, practically telling him to adopt Teddy already. Sirius knew this and made the point to tell Dorcas that it was up in the air. So, when Sirius told Dorcas that he wanted to adopt Teddy, she immediately stopped what he was doing and started the paperwork to get Teddy home. 

Many didn’t want to adopt Teddy because of how he acted out to the parents. He also didn’t have many friends. She was thrilled when she saw Teddy smiling and gathering his things from his room. He wouldn’t stop saying that he would be able to make boats with Sirius and that he would be able to go play with them. She did quite a lot to make sure that they could go home together that day, and they did. As they were heading out the door, Teddy turned to Dorcas and smiled. She bid them farewell and had been silently crying from being overjoyed. Teddy finally found a home after nearly a decade of being in the orphanage.

Chapter Text

“So I’m an uncle now?” Regulus said in shock but not surprised that it was Teddy, just shocked it happened so soon, “Wait… So I can take him on adventures and take him on walks through the forest! I know a river nearby. Remember the one we used to go to as kids? I mean, you would go as well, but it will be mainly me and the kid.”

“Shh. Calm down, he’s tired.” Sirius said, carrying Teddy on his shoulders, he had been tired from so much excitement and was peacefully sleeping. Sirius chuckled at this because it hadn’t even been 5 minutes before Teddy was feeling tired and asked to be picked up. Sirius didn’t know why, but he had smelled something. It wasn’t the cafe or any smell that others are used to. This smelled like the Sea. But they weren’t near the docks, it was all strange. 

Regulus was beaming and wouldn’t stop making plans about how the kid would spend his first year away from the orphanage. Sirius chuckled and tried to make their way home. It was getting dark, so they would need to hurry. But Sirius had the same funny feeling nipping at the back of his brain that he couldn’t shake. The smell got closer to him, and he couldn’t shake how wrong it felt. He stopped walking for a second to focus on his surroundings. 

“Sippy? Is everything okay?” Regulus said with a confused, worried face. “Do you need to take a break or-”

He didn’t get to finish that thought when Sirius said, “We need to get home, now and fast. I have a weird feeling, and I don’t want to stay around much longer to figure it out.” 

“You too? I thought it was just me.” 

They both felt the eyes on them and ran back to Grimmauld Place, an ironic place to say that they felt safe in. They ran fast and hard. Sirius made sure that Teddy was asleep while they made it to safety. They both knew the ongoing issue, among other things. But they had never encountered any, but you could feel their presence in the shadows, the smell of the open sea, the salt, blood, and even their pride. It’s what Sirius had smelled as soon as he met up with Regulus. 

Pirates. 

Most tales are of them being bloodthirsty sons of bitches who will never stop until they are satisfied with the amount of blood shed and gold in their hands. They murder, plunder, and raid the sea until they feel satisfied, which doesn’t happen much. Their ‘oh so kind parents’ gave them the ideology that all pirates were scum of the sea and should die for causing harm to people. So, logically speaking, both Sirius and Regulus loved pirate stories and wanted to be pirates. They also loved pretending that they were pirates fighting for gold (chocolates) and for love (James’ attention). 

They reached home in 5 minutes, which would have been a 20-minute walk. Yes, they ran like their life depended on it, mainly Teddy’s; if it were just them, they would have just speed-walked home, making it a 10-minute walk. 

“What happened?” Teddy asked in a sleepy voice, woken up by the running. “Is everything alright?”

“Everything is okay, Teddy, we are home now. I'll have someone make your room while we eat and show you around.” Sirius said, quickly opening the door and shoving Regulus inside. He quickly shut the doors behind him. “Archie, go tell James to make a room and to make sure that everything is ready. Can you check on the garden while I make dinner?”

That was code for making sure doors and windows are locked, nothing in reach that can cause harm to Teddy, and to make sure that Teddy isn’t able to grab certain things. Regulus nods and goes upstairs while Sirius is still carrying Teddy, making his way to the living room. 

“Woah! This place is huge!” Teddy exclaims and starts looking around, “I get to live here? This doesn’t feel real. Am I dreaming?”

“Ted, you aren’t dreaming. You live here now, and I promise you that I will make sure you are loved here. You are my priority, so if you need anything or want to do something, you tell me, okay? You're my responsibility and my child now. Nothing can stop me from being there for you. If you ever get in trouble, just remember that I will always love you. I know that there are times when it can be tough, but I don't want you to feel like you can never talk to me. I’m here for you, always.”

Teddy started crying because he felt loved by someone. Being in the orphanage made things difficult for him. He used to get bullied when he wasn’t lashing out at the parents or the other kids. He used to tell Sirius that He was his only friend. When Sirius first heard that his heart was crushed. He knew the kid was going through a lot, and that was the day he chose to start some paperwork to get Teddy home. Sirius didn’t want to have kids at first because he was scared he would turn into his parents. He didn't want that, even though he did want to have kids. 

Teddy was the one to change that for him, and now Sirius wants to adopt more kids. Hell, if Sirius could, he would adopt all of the kids in the orphanage, but he knows he can’t. Sirius wants what is best for these kids. He loves them, and it's why he wanted the orphanage built in the first place. He donates food, money, clothes, and a bunch of things for the kids. If his parents could see him now. They are most definitely rolling in their grave, but Sirius doesn’t care. He’s happy, and so is his kid. 

“Want to eat something, kid?” Sirius said after Teddy was done crying. He gave a weak nod. When Sirius tried to put him down on the floor, Teddy didn’t want to let go at first. He held on for dear life as if Sirius might disappear out of nowhere. “I’m not going anywhere, kid. Do you want to pick what you want to eat? I can make anything you’d like. We have a bunch of cookbooks to choose from.”

“Can we have spaghetti? It's one of the foods that brings me comfort, and I know you made the spaghetti in the orphanage.” Teddy says, finally letting go of Sirius and wiping away his tears. 

“Of course, kid. Wanna help me, or do you want to stay in the living room?” Sirius says, and Teddy makes it clear that he wants to stay near Sirius. He gets it, it’s an unfamiliar place to him, and doesn’t blame Teddy for wanting to be near him for right now. 

They walk into the kitchen, Teddy is in awe while looking around the new space. He looks around and wants to see the cookbooks. Sirius is boiling the water and is making the tomato sauce from scratch. Teddy occasionally looks up to make sure Sirius hasn’t magically disappeared. Sirius is about to drain the pasta when Regulus walks in with James. 

“Oh, are we having spaghetti? My favorite!” James says with a chuckle. “Hello there, what's your name?”

Teddy looks at Sirius, looking like he’s asking for permission to talk to him. Sirius gives him a small nod and, in a soft, quiet voice, says, “My name is Teddy. Sirius adopted me, and he’s my new dad now.”

“Well, Teddy, welcome home. My name is James, also known as Pongs. I’m a good friend of Sirius and Regulus. I call Sirius Pads or Padfoot, so if there's confusion with it, let me know, okay, kid?” James says with a polite smile, being very genuine, that he’s here if Teddy needs him to be here. To that, Teddy smiles and nods his head in approval.

“Alright, Mr. Prongs, go set up the table dinners, almost ready,” Sirius says while letting the spaghetti sit in the tomato sauce for a few seconds. 

James goes to the dining room to set the table while Sirius is serving everyone. “Anything else you’d like to eat, kid?” Teddy shakes his head no and tries to get off the chair, but slips and falls. Sirius catches him and says, “Careful there, wouldn’t want you hurt on the first day here.”

Teddy laughs and follows Sirius out of the kitchen. They make their way down the connecting hall to the dining room. As Sirius puts 2 plates down for James and Teddy, Regulus puts down plates for Sirius and himself. They eat peacefully when they start having a rundown of the day's events. They usually do this, but they need to be cautious about how they word the events because there is a child in the house now, and they know they do not want to scar the child even more than he already is. 

“Did you know your dear Octavious has been digging in the ground again?” James says, looking at Sirius with an eyebrow raised. “So you might want to fill in those holes on the weekends.”

“Wait, you have a dog? Can I see it?” Teddy chimes in, seeming curious and excited at the thought of having a dog in the home. 

“Of course you can see him, but you need to eat first, then you can see Octavious,” Sirius said, pointing to the plate of food in front of Teddy. “But, I’ll see if it’s something that he can smell or see. Weirdly, he is digging. He’s not a digger, and we have had him for 3 years now.” 

“That’s true, he’s more of a lap dog even tho he’s a full-grown Husky.” Regulus chimes in, making a point, “Plus, he’s too sassy and too dramatic to even want to get dirty. Unless it snows, then he gets dirty. He’s too delicate otherwise. He’s more high-maintenance than Sippy, and I know how much product he uses for his hair.” 

“Hey, you just don’t know how hard it is to maintain such perfect hair.’

“I do! We have the same type of hair, mother fu-”

“I SHALL NOT TOLERATE SUCH FOUL LANGUAGE IN FRONT OF MY SON!” Regulus opened his mouth and then shut it again because Sirius was right about now wanting the kid to hear curse words yet. He looked defeated and took a deep breath in before mumbling something about throwing water at Sirius in the middle of the night. To that, everyone started laughing, even Teddy, who hadn’t said much. 

Once they were finished eating, they cleaned the table and washed their plates. Sirius walked Teddy up the stairs to his room. Teddy was looking around and exploring the new space. Sirius put Teddy’s stuff from the orphanage on a chair. The pirate ship was set on a table near a window. The view was of the very distant sea, so it looked like the pirate ship was in the blue, salty waters. 

“Are you ready for bed now, Teddy?” Sirius asked in a soft voice. When Teddy nodded yes, Sirius turned off a few lights and closed the curtains, mostly, there was just a small crack of moonlight beaming through. “Goodnight, Teddy.” Sirius was about to walk out the door, but before he reached for the handle, Teddy shouted. 

“Wait, can you come here real quick. I want to ask you something.” Teddy said, sitting up in his bed. The sheets were red with some green and gold. 

Sirius made his way over to Teddy's side and sat on the edge of the bed. “What’s up, kid?”

“I wanted to ask if it’s okay if I can call you dad. I said it back in the orphanage, but I wanted to make sure. You have just been there for me. Even when I would bite, kick, and throw things at you. You never left, and you seem more of a father figure to me than anything. I sometimes wish you were my dad by blood, but we aren’t. I’m sorry if this seems weird, but I’m happy you did adopt me.”

“Teddy, of course, you can call me dad. I don’t mind that, and I'm glad that you see me as your father figure. Just know this: if you ever need anything, I’m here for you. If you have a nightmare, my room is right next to yours. I don’t want you to feel like you can’t do anything. I know it’s your first day here, but I'll tell you over and over again. You are my son now, nothing will stop me from loving and caring about you. Just, no more throwing books at me when you're frustrated with math homework. I know fractions are hard, but that doesn’t mean you can throw your textbook at me.” At that last sentence, Sirius ruffled Teddy’s hair. Teddy giggled and hugged Sirius. 

Sirius thought it was weird that he was the only one; Teddy showed his true self. This soft-spoken, kind, and innocent soul was only for Sirius. When Teddy explained why, it warmed Sirius’ heart. Sirius hugged his son, and Teddy melted into it, feeling safe and comfortable. 

“Can you stay with me tonight? I feel a bit scared sleeping by myself,” Teddy asked, looking up to meet Sirius’s eyes, to see if it was okay to ask. Teddy did have an issue with talking about how he felt with others. With Sirius, it was easy, he saw the good, the bad, and the ugly. Teddy was happy to know that someone stayed through all of it. 

“Yes, move over a bit so I can lie down with you,” Sirius said, gesturing to the bed. Teddy moved over just enough for Sirius to lie down with him. Sirius pulled the covers over both of them. “Goodnight, son.”

“Goodnight, Dad,” Teddy said, moving closer so that he could touch Sirius’s hand. 

Sirius smiled and looked at the door to find Regulus looking at them both. Regulus turned off some more lights, leaving only one lamp by the door. 

“Hi Sippy,” Regulus whispered to Sirius so as not to wake up Teddy in his half-asleep state. 

“Hi, Archi. If you feel like you need to stay with me in case of a panic attack, then you can. You know I don’t mind you staying with me through those.” Sirius whispered back to his baby brother. He had taken to being near Sirius at a young age, he had many panic attacks due to their lovely parents. It seemed to calm down after their deaths, but they were still there. 

“I’ll be fine for now,” Regulus said softly, recognizing that Sirius was genuine about Regulus’s well-being. “If need be, I’ll bother James,” chuckling, trying to be funny.

“Regulus, please,” Sirius said, concern and worry in his voice. 

“Sorry, but I know. I will go to you if I need it.” He giggled, “Remember when you would be doing this for me? Lying in bed with me because I was scared of being alone after mother and father were ‘telling me politely not to break a vase’ when I was 6. I’ll never forget that you stood up for me over something that small.”

“You're my baby brother, I will always want to protect you. I mean that.”

“I know, and I’m glad I have a big brother like you.” Sirius smiled at that. He’s glad they both were able to survive their abusive home together. “Now go to sleep. I wanna make pancakes with the kid tomorrow.” 

“Okay, okay. Goodnight, Archi.”

“Goodnight, Sippy, and thank you for always being there for me.”

“Anytime, now go before we wake up, Teddy with your loud mouth,” Sirius chuckled when Regulus scoffed. They smiled, and Regulus walked out of the room to go to sleep, closing the door behind him. 

Yes, Sirius was grateful that he and Regulus survived that hellhole. They went to bed, even though Sirius still felt something watching them. He tried to ignore it, but someone was looking at him through the window, where he hadn’t closed it all the way. Watching, waiting, needing to wait at the right time to strike their attack.