* * *

"Cat?"

The girl looked up from the morning copy of the Daily Prophet with her eyebrows raised. Harry Potter stood before her, awkwardly rocking on the balls of his feet as he rubbed at the wrist of his right arm, tugging the cuff of the sleeves which we slightly too long on him and tucking them up so they became the right length. It was the summer holidays now and Harry had arrived at The Burrow courtesy of Dumbledore late one evening without any forward warning.

He coughed and coughed again, "excuse me," he muttered, wiping his mouth on the turned up sleeve.

"What's up?" She asked him with a gentle smile, noticing his off demeanour. Folding up the newspaper she tossed it to the side in order to give him her undivided attention.

He appreciated that. Sometimes Ron and Hermione did not notice how they affected him just by their actions. Harry often found it hurtful when they would continue reading or doing something whilst he spoke- almost as if they did not really care for what he had to say. The Dursleys did that. They would not listen even more so when they were doing something else. Catina was different she seemed to understand him, even if they had not openly spoken about it, she seemed to simply know.

"Can I have a word? Please."

She nodded, glancing over at Mrs Weasley and Tonks who were quietly talking in the opposite corner of the living room. Merlin knows where the others were. She led Harry out of the door into the front garden of the Burrow where they took a seat on a small bench which looked ready to collapse but supported them surprisingly.

"Is everything alright?"

He coughed once again and shrugged. "Now that we know that you're Sirius' daughter I don't want to come between the two of you. I know if that was me in your position I wouldn't want some specky tosser intruding and trying to hog my dad from me."

Catina barked with laughter. Harry, although baffled by her reaction, couldn't help but smile because he noticed how similar her and Sirius' laughs were. How nobody noticed this before was a miracle since it sounded so alike!

"Don't be a melt, Harry. You're his family. You and I understand each other more than anyone else here does and I can't deny the immense connection and bond you have with... him. I don't want you to feel as though this changes any of that, he loves you Harry and wants to be included in your life as your family." She said, struggling to decide on how to refer to Sirius, ultimately concluding with 'him'.

A heavy weight lifted from Harry's shoulders and his heart swelled like a balloon hearing someone reiterate Sirius' love for him. He loved Sirius; he brought him closer to his father, giving him a real insight into the life of James Potter. A small sense of guilt still swelled in his heart but her reassuring nod and opening of her arms to hug him diminished it as they enveloped each other.

He found himself nuzzling into her barely, Catina doing the same. There was a flicker of a pull that closed all gaps between them, a spark between them igniting as they touched. Like two magnets bonding. It felt right to be in the arms of one another, not in a romantic sense but more of a familial.

"You're alright for a specky tosser, Potter." Catina stated.

"And you're alright for a snake, Lennox."

The two shared laughter, breaking away from one another as Fred and Sirius exited the front door in search for the two. The latter was side-eying Fred, his fatherly instincts already kicking in from the minute he found out about his daughter. It did not go unnoticed, everyone could see it as it was as clear as day. Fred, got his own kick out of it by fuelling it and teasing Sirius.

"Merlin's Beard, Potter!" He exclaimed, "I already have to fight my brother to keep his paws off of my girlfriend I don't want to have to do the same with you, only my paws belong on her." He smirked, throwing a glance at Sirius who raised his eyebrows and flicked his tongue into the corner of his cheek.

"Erm, not an object here!" She said, even though she was fully aware of Fred's antics and mission to royally annoy her father.

"I know, my sweetiepie, but this little git needs to know to keep his hands off of you."

The three visibly cringed as Fred dared to use the term 'sweetiepie' in regards to Catina. Harry scoffed at the remark, nodding goodbye to Catina and stood up.

He smiled at Sirius who ruffled his hair as he stepped past. He then patted Fred's shoulder and said: "You don't need to worry about me and Cat, me and Ginny on the other hand... I'm sure she'd appreciate my hands on her." and with that he sauntered off into the house leaving Fred clenching his jaw and the father-daughter duo spellbound at the sass that poured out of the boy.

"James would be so proud. I know I am." Grinned Sirius.

"Excuse me! He did not dare to speak about my baby, let me just reiterate, my BABY sister like that. Get back here you wanker!" Fred ran after Harry who laughed so loudly from inside of the Burrow that Catina and Sirius could hear it clearly from outside.

"May I just say, as much as I want to protect you, Cat, you have impeccable taste in men."

"Sorry?"

"What? You act as though I despise the lad! Like I want to squash his lanky self with the heel of my shoe and then mangle the crushed remains until they merge with the grounds. No, of course I don't. He's a laugh, back in school if he and George were there when I was they for sure would have been mates with us. I see myself in him, I do."

"I don't know how you would react to my friends then if that's your opinion on Fred, they're not exactly carbon copies of each other."

"That's not a bad thing. It's good having a partner who is not the same as your friends, that way you both can have a break, if they were the exact same I doubt the relationship would last very long, it would get awfully boring quickly. I must say though, I am a little weary of this Prosper fellow, he seems a little odd, especially after he gave you the heart in a locket and even more now that his family work for-"

"They had no choice."

"I know, I know. Normally I would not understand that but I trust your judgement so they must be desperate."

"So you'll give Bella a chance-"

"Sweetheart, that's a whole other complicated mess and I honestly can't give you a straight answer to that. I can't deny that she looked after you but I have never once understood my cousin and this has baffled me even more. I won't make a promise to you but I'm open to anything. After all, what's life without a little risk?" He nudged her with his shoulder, a smile curling at both of their lips.

"Harry told me you said that before."

"Really?"

"Mhm, we talk about a lot of things. He's worried that I'll get vexed at him because of teh relationship you two have with each other. I've assured him that I would never, after all he is your family. He needs you more."

"He's your family too. God-brother and sister. And neither of you need me more than the other. I have a duty of care to you both, regardless of the years I have missed in your lives you are my children, by blood and by love. I love you both to the moon and back a million and a million times, call me dramatic but I do. When all of this is over we will be a proper family."

"You said that to him also. He told me, back before Remus got baited out as a werewolf, speaking of Remus. Can he be in the family too?"

"Bold of you to assume he wasn't already. Nah, I'm kidding, not really. Remus is my brother. I know how much you mean to him and how much he means to you also. I won't take that from either of you, he is as much as family to you as I am. You don't have to call me dad if you don't want too, we don't know each other as much as a father should know his daughter, Sirius or Padfoot is fine unless you feel as though it is right to call me dad. I'd love you too but it's no pressure, okay?"

"I was going to ask you about that actually."

"I know, Bill told me."

"I'm not sure yet. Is that okay?"

"It's absolutely fine, sweetheart."

A/N-

Christ it's been a while! I'm so sorry for taking so long to upload everything has gotten away from me. I miss writing for you guys so much and hopefully I will pick it up more again once I settle into university (I move in on the 28th!). Thank you so much for your patience, I hope you are all well!

p.s. I have been uploading tiktoks to do with my books if you wanted to check them out, my user is @ freshprinceofBella_ <3

Neverlandhiraeth.