Padfoot rested his head on his paws at Radka Svoboda’s feet, waiting patiently at the small counter in Skeffington’s Apothecary, a small shop tucked away in the corner of Knockturn Alley. He huffed, annoyed already at being made to wait for the action. This was his first undercover case, and of course, Radka saw use in his animagus form, so for the last four weeks, he had played Radka’s loyal pet dog and followed her around while she did all the talking. Padfoot had been annoyed at first, but he realized the discreteness as Radka was able to sneak out small samples of vials and jars using his collar or harness for testing, along with allowing Padfoot to sneak into conversations happening in the far back of the shop where she was not invited. Padfoot slowly grew to enjoy his role in this case—and it gave him a lot of alone time with Radka (an added bonus).

            The case was a disgusting one. To cut costs, the shop owner was allegedly hiring hitmen to kill muggles and harvest their organs, which the shop owner then sold as “pig liver” or “small dragon breed kidneys.” Forget the disastrous effects the wrong ingredient may have on a potion, the murder of so many muggles within the last year had made headlines in the muggle and wizarding news, and Radka had made the case number one priority. She applied for a job opening at the shop and was accepted as a cashier. Clifford Skeffington was even kind enough to allow Padfoot to come as often as he liked, so long as he was housebroken.

            Padfoot scratched an ear as he waited for the hitman to arrive with the goods. Today was supposed to be the big day—the day they finally bust the hitman and Skeffington for their crimes. They had plenty of evidence, now they just needed to hear a confession and it was case closed.

            The bell rang as the door swung open to the small shop full of aisles and shelves of ingredients, and Padfoot jumped to his feet in excitement. Finally! Radka stood up a little straighter, brushing off invisible dust from her washed out salmon robe that was covered in off-color patches.

            “Mr. Brady, jak se daří?” Radka greeted in Czech. “How are you?” 

            “Eliška!” the heavy-set man greeted as he walked into the room, setting down a large box near the front desk in order to open his arms out in warm greeting. He had a five o’clock shadow and wavy blonde hair. “It’s so lovely to see you—has Cliff got ya working a full shift again?”

            “Ano, but I need the money.” Radka waved off his concerns. “It is no problem.”

            “You know,” Brady started to say as he leaned into the desk and stared across at Radka, “I don’t know if I’ve told you this, but your accent is so exotic. It’s beautiful.”

            “Díky!” Radka brushed back a few strands of hair. “You flatter me.”

            Brady smiled then glanced over the counter, spotting Padfoot, who was staring intently at Brady.

            “Ah, you have—don’t tell me . . . Medvěd.”

            “Very good, Mr. Brady. You are learning.” Radka looked at Padfoot. “Medvěd, sedni.”

            Padfoot sat down at the command, then allowed Brady to round the counter and stroke his head. He wagged his tail for show while enduring the act.

            “That means “bear,” right?” Brady asked.

            “Ano.”

            “Who’s a good boy?” Brady said to Padfoot. “Yes, you are, you are a good boy.”

            I can’t wait to sink my teeth into your face, Padfoot thought while wagging his tail at Brady.

            “What’s in the box?” Radka asked, effectively drawing Brady’s attention back to the day’s visit.

            “A delivery for Clifford,” Brady said, jumping up and grabbing the box off the counter before Radka could look inside it. He frowned at Radka and pointed at the door leading to the back. “Cliff is here, right?”

            “In his office,” Radka said. “As always.”

            “Thank you,” Brady said with a bow before pushing past the counter and disappearing through the door leading to the back. Padfoot shook himself off before catching the swinging door with a paw, keeping it from shutting all the way. He tilted his head, straining his hearing to catch every word. Radka used a small amplifying charm and the voices carried into the front.

            “Jack! What are you doing here?” Clifford’s voice could be heard.

            “I have your package,” Brady said. “Three livers, three sets of kidneys, three spleens, one set of intestines, crushed bones, and three hearts. Just as you asked.”

            “What about the brains?”

            “You’ll need to find someone else for that work. I ain’t breaking into skulls for that shite. The intestines was pushing it for me.”

            “No different than any other animal.”

            “It’s a little different. Sometimes, they’re still staring back at ya. I can’t do it.”

            Come on, Padfoot nearly snarled under his breath. Someone say that these are human remains.

            “You have a weak stomach. I have a buyer who’s having a hard time finding troll brains and I promised him a shipment.”

            “Well maybe you’d like to do the honors next time then. I delivered the majority and I deserve my dues. You ain’t going to find anyone else willing to do this kind of work. Take it or leave it.”

            “Fine.”

            There was silence for a few moments before what sounded like a fist hitting a desk startled Padfoot.

            “You’re three-thousand galleons short!” Brady snapped. “You promised me exactly ten.”

            “A thousand for each brain you did not deliver.”

            “Bollocks! I don’t go around killing muggles to be ripped off by some old curmudgeon who can’t do his job right!”

            “We’ve got them,” Radka said into her wand. “Move in, go, go!”

            Padfoot wagged his tail as he heard aurors breach a back door and storm into the building. He heard a surprised yelp from Clifford as he was hit with a spell, a stunner most likely. There was a scuffle and many objects falling before the sound of running came Padfoot’s way. Padfoot snarled and leaped away from the door, hopping up on a shelf of dried herbs and pushing it over.

            The shelf fell just as the door swung open, and Brady tripped over the cabinet, falling to the ground, his wand flying out of his hands.

            Padfoot shifted into Sirius as Brady crawled after his wand, and he trained his own wand on Brady.

            “Freeze!” he said, and Brady froze, his hand inches away from his wand. “Don’t even think about it.”

            Brady sighed in defeat and held his hands out and above his head in surrender while several aurors approached with wands trained on the perpetrator.

            The building was closed and secured with magical yellow tape that would keep trespassers from contaminating the scene while the two criminals were escorted away with magic restraining cuffs. As Sirius assisted with securing the scene, three aurors paused in their work to smirk at him.

            “Hey, Black,” one of the aurors called to him. “Who’s a good boy? Who’s a good boy?”

            The aurors laughed while Sirius rolled his eyes.

            “Ah, put a sock in it,” Sirius said, though without much malice. He finished up securing the scene and followed Radka back to the small apartment they had stayed in for the duration of the case. It was time to pack away their things and return to their normal lives. The apartment was on the second floor of an old, falling apart building not far from Knockturn Alley. They climbed the stairs and Radka used her key to open the door. She immediately began packing her clothes in an efficient manner while Sirius took his time with his belongings.

            “Well done on your first case,” Radka said. “I do not believe we would have gotten as far so quickly without your help. Your ability to sneak around inconspicuous will be of great aid in the future.”

            “Till everyone starts catching on to the big black dog in the room.”

            “There are spells to change what your animagus form looks like temporarily. You could be a white dog, or a brown dog with black spots. If it comes to that, of course.”

            “Of course,” Sirius said, folding a few clothes and setting them in his suitcase before slowly walking toward Radka. He placed his hands on her hips, leaning in close to talk in her ear. “You know, we technically have an hour to pack and vacate the apartment. And it’s just us right now.”

            “Not now, Sirius,” Radka said, though she did not resist Sirius’s hands exploring lower and lower. “We’re supposed to be packing and reporting back to the office for a debriefing.”

            “You know, Brady was really into Eliška’s accent and language. How come you never talk Czech with me? It really is an attractive sound.”

            “Dostaneš nás do problémů,” Radka said, turning around and facing Sirius.

            “Mmm, I love it,” Sirius said before kissing Radka while pushing her back toward the bed they had shared on many nights.

            The next day, Sirius waved his wand around his house to dust and clean after a few weeks of neglect. With a steady job and no reason to stick around, Sirius sold his parents’ manor and found a new home a little closer to where the Snape Family lived. It had been more coincidence than intentional, as Severus could floo to his house with Harry whenever, but it did feel nice to be closer to his godson.

            His new house wasn’t large or glamorous, but it was enough for a single man and potentially a small family if he decided to ever settle down in the future. It was a nice change from the massive manor he grew up in that had far too many cold and empty rooms.

            After cleaning the house and restocking groceries, he sorted through his mail, having a large stack to go through. By the time he finished with the mail, paying bills, and catching up on the news, a few hours and gone by, and he was starting to feel a bit hungry. Before he could head toward the kitchen in search of a snack, his floo flared up and Severus stepped through carrying Harry.

            “Black,” Severus greeted, “I’m dropping Harry off as scheduled.”

            “I wasn’t expecting Harry until one,” Sirius said, glancing at a grandfather clock. His eyes widened. “And it is one.”

            “That it is,” Severus agreed with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

            “Sorry,” Sirius said, rubbing his face. “Time is a little skewed after four weeks of living a different life undercover.”

            “I can imagine,” Severus said.

            “Super-detective Uncle Sirius,” Harry said, leaning back in Severus’s hold until he was upside down and facing Sirius. “Did you catch a bad guy?”

            “I did. And now he will never hurt anyone again.”

            Harry smiled at that before pulling himself back up to Severus, who quickly blew a raspberry on Harry’s neck, who squealed at the sensation. Sirius snorted at the interaction before he gestured to his kitchen.

            “I was thinking about making some lunch,” Sirius said. “You hungry for anything, Harry?”

            “Can I have fish and chips?” Harry asked, leaning back again until he was hanging upside down.

            “May I,” Severus corrected. “And don’t forget the magic word.”

            “May I have fish and chips please?” Harry said again, still upside down and now sticking his tongue out too.

            “Well, since you asked so nicely, how could I refuse?” Sirius said before checking his kitchen for the right supplies. He had frozen breaded fish and fries, and he pulled out the bags and turned the oven on. While he waited for that to heat up, he stepped back out into the living room where Severus was setting Harry down.

            “Can you stay, too, Dad?” Harry asked.

            “Afraid not, son,” Severus said. “I need to take your sister to her dance rehearsal. You’ll have so much fun, you won’t even notice I’m gone.”

            “But I want you to stay,” Harry said, tearing up and sniffling.

            “Now, now,” Severus said, tilting Harry’s chin up, “none of that. You will be just fine without me for a couple of hours. Calm down, you’re going to make Uncle Sirius think you don’t want to spend time with him. You want to spend time with super-detective Uncle Sirius, right?”

            Harry rubbed his eyes and nodded his head.

            Severus ruffled Harry’s head and walked over to Sirius.

            “If he doesn’t want to stay . . .” Sirius stared to say.

            “Don’t take it personally,” Severus interrupted. “He has days where he is exceptionally clingy. This is good for him. And me. It’s not easy having a six-year-old attached to your leg for ten hours straight.”

            “Is that normal?” Sirius glanced at Harry.

            “Healer Villin believes it to be a form of regression. It’s normal, especially for a child that has been through something as traumatic as Harry has. Thankfully, it’s only now and then, not every day. With time, routine, and a lot of reassurances, I think he’ll grow out of it. But be prepared to receive a lot of hugs. And to give a few.”

            “Noted.”

            Severus walked back to Harry, who was still pouting and giving his best sad puppy eyes.

            “I don’t want you to leave,” Harry mumbled.

            “I know. You’ll be just fine. Give me a hug.” Severus held his arms out and Harry ran into them. Severus kissed Harry’s temple before standing up again. “I’ll see you in a couple hours. Be good for Uncle Sirius.”

            “I’m always good,” Harry said.

            “Mmhmm,” Severus agreed nonchalantly as he stepped into the floo. He waved one last time at his son before disappearing. Harry pouted at the flames for a moment before turning to look at Sirius. At the moment, the oven beeped, and Sirius gave Harry a reassuring smile before heading back to the kitchen to put the food in the oven. Once the fish and chips were set to bake, Sirius turned around and startled when he saw Harry right behind him.

            “You move fast,” Sirius said.

            “Is lunch ready?” Harry asked, peering around his godfather.

            “Not yet, kiddo. It just went into the oven.”

            “I miss Daddy,” Harry said, his lower lip puckering out.

            “Already? He’ll be back soon. In the meantime, we can hang out. What do you say about that?”

            Harry shrugged and held his arms out to Sirius, who obliged him by picking him up, allowing Harry to rest his head on his shoulder. Sirius sighed and stroked his anchor beard briefly before an idea struck him.

            “How about, after lunch, you and I head to my secret super-detective headquarters?”         

            “Really?” Harry asked, his eyes lighting up.

            “Yep. But you’ll have to blend in. Only detectives are allowed there, so we’ll need a disguise.”

            “Like a cape?” Harry asked.

            “A cape is a good start,” Sirius said, “let’s see what else we can find.”

            In the twenty or so minutes it took the fish and chips to bake in the oven, Sirius managed to dress Harry up in a very cliché detective outfit, with a long maroon trench coat shrunk to his size, complete with a deerstalker cap and a marron blanket turned into a temporary cape. Harry ate his food while chatting away about having his own Street Hawk—which Sirius learned was a combat motorbike designed to fight crime. Sirius was amused by Harry’s story while wondering what crazy muggle thought up that kind of invention. Once food was over, Sirius took Harry out to his own “Street Hawk” in the garage.  

            “Do I get to ride it this time?” Harry asked excitedly as he jumped around the motorbike.

            “How else will we get to the secret headquarters?” Sirius asked.

            Sirius attached the sidecar and made sure it was secured the muggle way and magically as a precaution. He cast a few protection spells over the sidecar then lifted Harry into it.

            “This is brilliant,” Harry exclaimed as he was strapped in securely. “Are we going to fly?”

            “Of course,” Sirius said. “But you let me know if you feel ant tickles in your throat at any time, okay?”

            “Okay,” Harry said as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a small device. “I have my inhaler.”

            “That’s good,” Sirius said. “You keep that safe in your pocket.”

            Harry shoved it back in his pocket while Sirius mounted the bike. It roared to life before slowly leaving the garage and driving down the winding driveway. Once on the open road, Sirius sped up the bike. Harry cheered loudly in the sidecar, his hands up in the air as if it were a rollercoaster ride, his cape flapping in the wind behind him.  

            Sirius snorted at that before he activated the flight mode, and they took off into the sky. There were several spells that made sure the wind did not suffocate them at the speed they were going at, as well as equilibrium charms to avoid popping ears at the height they reached. Complicated charms and hexes Sirius had learned to add through trial and error. Harry eagerly looked over the edge of the seat once they were moving steadily through the air, waving down at the ant-sized cars and people before trying to touch a cloud that dissipated away.

            “This is like flying on a broom!” Harry said, looking up at Sirius.

            “It is, isn’t it?” Sirius said.

            “How did you make it fly?”

            “I enchanted it back when I was still in school. Sixth year, actually. Your Daddy James and I got in so much trouble with this bike on many occasions. We were almost caught by muggle police once.”

            “For what?”

            “Oh, fooling around. We were dumb kids. I expect you to be much smarter than us and never fool around with a flying bike.”

            “I’m not even allowed to drive yet.”

            “That’s good. Less trouble to get into.”

            “When I’m old enough to drive, can you teach me to fly on the bike?”

            Sirius smiled down at Harry with a proud smile.

            “I would be honored to,” Sirius said. “With your father’s permission, of course.”

            After flying at a quick pace for thirty minutes, they arrived near London, where Sirius had to land the bike out of sight and apparate with Harry the rest of the way to the red telephone box that would take them to the Ministry of Magic. Sirius inputted the code and Harry startled when they were slowly lowered into the ground, laughing as London disappeared and they appeared in a secret underground lair full of busy wizards and witches. Harry jumped up and down in excitement as they left the telephone box.

            “Is this the secret headquarters?” Harry asked, taking Sirius’s hand when he offered it to him.

            “Yes, it is. We are going to the secret detective unit. Stay close to me now, I don’t want to lose you in this crowd.”

            “I’m blending in,” Harry muttered under his breath, bringing his cape up and around his face. “No one suspects a thing.”

            Sirius refrained from laughing and nodded his head in agreement.

            He walked over to an elevator that took them even deeper underground to the Detective Unit, and he passed through a security ward charm that identified himself and Harry as nonthreats since he was a detective and Harry was a child. He kept a hold of Harry’s hand as he entered the office spaces where several coworkers were busy reviewing files and cases. Several nodded in greeting while a few did doubletakes when they noticed Harry.

            He finally went up to his desk where he had files strewn across the table. A few picture frames sat on the desk, one of all the Marauders when they were still in school (with Peter faded out by a charm), one of himself with James where they were leaning back against the motorbike, and then finally, a recent picture of Harry cuddling his stuffed dinosaur while sitting under a tree, smiling softly at the camera. It was one Tori had managed to snap while she had been babysitting overnight when Severus had night duty at Hogwarts on the weekends. Harry pointed it out immediately.

            “Hey, that’s me,” Harry said.

            “Yes, it is,” Sirius said.

            “It’s going to blow my cover,” Harry said.

            “Well, we can’t have that!” Sirius grabbed the frame and set it face down, glancing around the office space to make sure no one saw. He breathed out a sigh of relief and whispered, “I don’t think anyone saw.”

            “Yes,” Harry said softly. “I have successfully infiltrated the building.”

            Nearly choking on a laugh, Sirius briefly wondered where Harry learned some of these phrases when he noticed Radka walking his way in her usual detective uniform, a dark robe and knee-high boots.

            “Sirius, I believe it is your day off,” she said.

            “Well, I just couldn’t stay away from you long, now, could I?” Sirius said.

            “Who do you have here?” Radka asked, smiling down at Harry with a curious look.

            “I am Detective Snape, ready for duty,” Harry said, holding out a hand to shake Radka’s.

            “Oh,” Radka said with a serious look as she shook Harry’s hand. “We’ve been waiting for you, Detective. A dangerous criminal has escaped our interrogation room. We could use your help locating him.”

            “What does he look like?” Harry brought his cape around himself once more.

            “He’s about yay tall, has a very long nose, reddish brown hair, and a whip-like tail. Do you think you can find him, Detective Snape?”

            “I accept your mission, ma’am!” Harry saluted Radka before running around the desk and then into the surrounding office spaces.

            “Be careful,” Radka called after him, “he’s considered armed and dangerous.”

            Sirius chuckled as he watched Harry look under desks and chairs for the suspect, other detectives grinning as he passed them. Harry would make a great Auror or detective if he decided to pursue that career. Radka gave him a look when Harry was out of sight.

            “So, what did you bring Detective Snape here for?”

            “I just wanted to show him a part of my life. He loves that I’m some kind of “super-detective” in his eyes, and I wanted him to see a bit more of that. Besides, he’s really into it.”

            “Yes, he is. He’ll find Baneberry in no time at the rate he’s moving. So, this is the best you could come up with for a day off with your godson?”

            “Well, I had other plans, but he was already missing his dad and I guess he goes through periods of excessive clinginess. I just wanted something a little more distracting for him than some games at home. He was in tears when Severus left the house.”

            “Poor kid. Adapting to a new lifestyle and understanding that you will not be abandoned again can be very hard. It was for me when I ended up in the foster care system.”

            “Wait, you were in foster care?” Sirius frowned at Radka. “You never told me that.”

            “There was no reason to, until now. Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents. They took me in and raised me as their own from the age of seven on. I was treated no differently than their other kids. But it wasn’t easy leaving the only life I knew, even if it was homeless on the streets with my mother. To this day, no one has solved her disappearance.”

            “Wow, I’m sorry to hear that.”

            “It’s okay. One day, I will find out what happened to her.”

            “Is that why you became a detective?”

            “Partly. It certainly had a large impact on future decisions.”

            “Have you found any leads?” Sirius asked.

            “Not yet. The incident happened years ago, so naturally, most of the evidence is probably gone. Including her. But I’m not giving up yet till I’ve exhausted everything I’ve got.”

            “Sounds like you,” Sirius said.

            “Uncle—I mean, Detective Sirius!” Harry yelled to Sirius. “I found the criminal!”

            Harry was pulling on the collar of a large bloodhound in a spell-proofed, brown harness labeled “K-9” that was tolerantly following Harry’s tugs, licking the child’s face every now and then with a slobbery tongue, his tail wagging a thousand miles an hour. Harry laughed at the dog’s kisses before declaring, “You are under arrest! You have the right to remain silent.”

            “Look, he’s already reading criminals their rights,” Sirius joked and Radka laughed warmly.

            “Poor Baneberry,” Radka said. “I guess we’ll have to find a new illegal-potion-sniffing dog.”

            After spending an hour at the Detective Unit learning names of other detectives and asking a hundred questions about criminals and cases, Harry said goodbye to Baneberry and Radka, taking Sirius’s hand and following his godfather out of the Ministry of Magic and back to the motorcycle. Sirius strapped Harry into the sidecar once more and they took flight back home. Harry seemed a bit more subdued on the way home, yawning a few times and rubbing his eyes. Once they made it back to Sirius’s house, Harry lifted his arms up to Sirius when he was freed from the straps securing him in the seat.

            “Tired, kiddo?” Sirius asked as he lifted Harry into his arms.

            Harry nodded and wrapped his arms around Sirius’s neck while resting his head on Sirius’s shoulder. Sirius rubbed Harry’s back as he carried him into his house, pausing when he saw Severus sitting at his dining table reading the Daily Prophet.

            “There you two are,” Severus said, setting the paper down and standing up.

            “Daddy!” Harry cried gleefully, and when Sirius set him down, he ran over to his father, jumping up into his father’s arms and hugging him tightly before talking quickly. “Guess what? Uncle Sirius took me to his secret headquarters, and I pretended to be a detective, and no one knew it was me! I even helped catch a criminal—he was a dog; he was actually really nice. I hope he doesn’t get into too much trouble. And I got to ride Uncle Sirius’s bike!”

            “Is that why you’re dressed like that?” Severus asked. He glanced at Sirius as he said, “I’m sure you were secured safely when you rode the bike?”

            “He had a seatbelt in the sidecar with several other protection spells added,” Sirius supplied while Harry nodded in answer to Severus’s question.

            “Thank you for keeping him busy,” Severus said as he adjusted Harry in his arms to a more comfortable hold. “Though I thought you had plans on staying home.”

            “I did. You didn’t see his sad puppy-eyes when you left. I needed someway to cheer him up.”

            “You might want to start getting used to that look,” Severus said. “He’s a professional at it. You’ll be out taking over the world next.”

            “For Harry, if that’s what he wants, that’s what he’ll get.”

            Severus snorted at that, planting a kiss on Harry’s head when he yawned and leaned his head onto his shoulder.

            “Someone needs a nap now,” Severus said, glad when Harry didn’t protest the idea. “Thank you again for watching him.”

            “Of course. Anytime you need me to.”

            Sirius waved goodbye to Harry and watched as Severus used the floo to head home. He couldn’t wait for his next visit with his godson, and he checked his calendar to see when that would be. Seeing no dates planned in the future, he marked a few days he wanted to have off from work to make time for Harry. He would not miss out on watching his godson grow up.

Jak se daří? —How are you?

Ano—Yes

Díky—thanks (informal)

Sedni—sit down

Dostaneš nás do problémů—you’re gonna get us in trouble.