42 Magical Night Out

'You'd best be leaving now, Master Sirius,' Mopsy said quickly. 'Don't worry. Mopsy is holding Miss Cassie off.' The elf darted up the stairs and Sirius led the boys out of the house. Parked in front of number seventeen, Windermere Court was a sleek black coupe.

'Where's the Diablo?' Draco asked.

'In France, of course,' Sirius replied. 'You didn't honestly expect me to drag that thing all the way back here, did you? This is a V8 Vantage. Don't worry, it's fun too.' He opened the door and practically shoved the boys into the back seat before himself sliding into the front passenger seat. A wizard Harry and Draco did not know sat behind the steering wheel.

'Boys, I'd like you to meet Remus Lupin,' Sirius said as the car pulled into the traffic. 'He's an old friend of mine and James's from school.'

'Remus Lupin?' Harry repeated. The name sounded familiar. Then it clicked. 'You must be Moony!'

'That's right,' Remus said. 'And you must be Aries and Draco. I've heard a lot about you two.'

Draco sniggered. 'Not nearly so much as we've heard about you. James Potter's portrait used to tell us stories about you and Uncle Sirius all the time.'

'Is it true that you Spellotaped Filch's cat to the chandelier in the Slytherin common room during third year?' Harry asked eagerly.

Remus chuckled. 'I'm afraid so.'

'What about the Giant Squid incident in sixth year?' Draco asked.

Remus winced. 'I may need to have a talk with James about which stories he tells you.'

'Actually, Dad told us that one,' Harry said wryly. Remus grimaced and Sirius let out a loud bark-like laugh.

'Of course he did,' Remus said. 'You'd better watch it, Padfoot, if you're not careful with your stories, these two scoundrels may wind up burning down the castle before they finish their first year.'

'There's always Durmstrang,' Harry said casually. Draco punched his shoulder.

'Shut up about that, Aries,' he growled. 'They're not sending us to Durmstrang.'

Harry grinned. 'Beauxbâtons, alors. Nous déjà parlons français.'

'Aries,' Sirius said sharply. 'Nous l'avons discuté mille fois. La décision est faite. Quel est le quatrième règle pour la vie avec Sirius?'

Harry sighed. 'Sirius locutus est, causa finita est.'

'Ne l'oublie jamais, mon grand.'

Draco decided it was time to change the subject. 'So, Mr Lupin, where are we going?'

'I'm not sure, exactly,' Remus replied. 'I'm just following Sirius's directions.'

'You'll see when we get there,' Sirius said. 'I promise, you won't be disappointed.'

Ten minutes later they pulled into a car park and climbed out. Sirius led the four wizards to a small Turkish restaurant.

'This place has the best kebabs west of Istanbul,' he proclaimed eagerly.

'Kebabs?' Harry asked. 'What are they?'

'Meat on a stick,' Remus explained.

'Moony!' Sirius scolded. 'Kebabs are one of the most sublime achievements of the human race.'

'Better than pizza?' Draco was in awe.

Sirius paused reflectively. 'That's a difficult question. I don't know whether there truly is anything better than pizza. But kebabs are certainly on the same level.'

The boys' eyes went wide. Remus's eyes rolled.

They stepped into the restaurant and found themselves at the end of a long line.

'How long are we going to have to wait?' Remus complained.

'Watch the whinging!' Harry and Draco responded in unison. Remus chuckled.

'I'd forgot all about the rules! I see you've got them trained, Padfoot,' he said fondly, but Sirius was not paying them any attention. Instead he was waving at a man who was standing near the kitchen. The man jumped when he saw Sirius and hurried up to the front.

'Good evening, Mr Black,' the man said eagerly. 'It is very good to see you again. How have you been?'

'Very well, thank you, Mehmet,' Sirius replied. 'Allow me to introduce my son Aries, my nephew Draco and my good friend Mr Lupin.'

'A pleasure to meet you all,' Mehmet said graciously.

'Mehmet Tosun is the owner of this restaurant,' Sirius explained to Remus and the boys. He turned back to Mehmet. 'I was telling them you have the best kebabs west of Istanbul. It seems a lot of other people had the same idea.' He gave the owner a winning smile. 'Is it a long wait?'

'For you, Mr Black, there is no wait,' Mehmet replied, and motioned for them to follow him.

'Hold on!' protested a very large Muggle with a bushy moustache who was standing alongside a thin woman with a very long neck. It took a moment, but Harry paled as he recognised Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. He heard Remus gasp.

'May I help you, sir?' Mehmet asked Uncle Vernon politely.

'My wife and I have been waiting here for twenty minutes,' Uncle Vernon said. 'If anyone should get to go in it's us.'

'Mr Black has a reservation,' Mehmet explained.

'We called earlier, and you said you didn't accept reservations!' Aunt Petunia complained shrilly.

'It is a standing reservation, madam.' Mehmet turned his back on the Dursleys and ushered the four wizards to a somewhat private table near the back. Remus whispered something in Sirius's ear. The Animagus's eyes shone with a feral glint.

'If you'll excuse me for a moment,' he said to his companions once they were seated. 'I need to use the loo.'

He walked just out of their sight, and a few moments later Harry heard a familiar shriek.

'Who let that monstrous thing in here?' Aunt Petunia shouted. 'Do something, Vernon!'

Harry jumped up and headed back towards the front in order to see what was going on. He was just in time to see an enormous and very familiar black dog relieve himself into Aunt Petunia's new handbag before Mehmet came out with a broom and chased the dog away. Harry sauntered back to the table with a wide grin on his face.

'What happened?' Draco asked.

'Some stray dog wandered in off the street and pissed all over that annoying Muggle woman's handbag,' Harry explained, laughing. Remus winced and put his head in his hands.

Sirius reappeared after a couple of minutes.

'Feeling better?' Harry asked with a smirk.

'Much,' Sirius replied brightly. He sat down at the table and took charge of ordering their food. He started them off with cigar-shaped cheese pies and an assortment of tasty dips. Sirius rattled off their exotic names with ease, but Harry couldn't keep them straight. Then they had a salad before moving onto the meat. Sirius ordered several different kinds of kebabs: lamb kebabs, chicken kebabs, salmon kebabs, kebabs which were made from a mixture of ground beef and lamb. Harry and Draco devoured the delicious new food with abandon.

'You were right, Uncle Sirius!' Draco exclaimed. 'Kebabs are definitely on the same order as pizza!'

.....

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