the_debt_of_time

In the end, he figured that if Harry wanted to work off his emotions, Sirius was not
going to stop him.
While Sirius poked at eggs in the frying pan—mostly to look as though he was
actually participating—Harry turned to grab plates from the nearby dresser. Mrs Weasley
approached the boy, lifted the plates from his hands and pulled him into a tight hug.
"I don't know what would have happened if it hadn't been for you, Harry. They
might not have found Arthur for hours, and then it would have been too late. But thanks
to you, he's alive. Dumbledore's been able to think up a good cover story for Arthur being
where he was; you've no idea what trouble he would have been in otherwise."
She turned away, wiping tears from her eyes and looked at Sirius, paused for a long
moment before she sniffled, and then spoke. "Sirius, I... I've been wrong about you. I
can't tell you how much I appreciate you looking after my children and... and Harry," she
added in a whisper, looking down ashamed.
"It's my job and my honour to look after Harry," Sirius said, putting a hand on
Harry's shoulder, wondering if she would take the movement as the possessive one that he
meant it to be. Whether Molly noticed it or not, Sirius smiled when she bobbed her head
in agreement. "It was my pleasure to have been able to help your family, Molly. The kids
are supposed to be out of Hogwarts anyway, and Arthur will need time to recover. Why
don't you all stick around here for as long as you need to?"
Molly burst into a fresh set of tears and wrapped him in a tight hug that Sirius
grimaced at. He was not used to physical affection these days, least of all from witches, and
Tonks certainly did not count. He cleared his throat and lightly patted Molly on the back.
"Oh, Sirius, I'm so grateful. They think Arthur will be there a little while, and it
would be wonderful to be nearer. Of course, that might mean we're here for Christmas―"
Sirius's eyes lit up. "The more the merrier!" Glancing back down at the pan, he
noted that the eggs had turned a shade of brown that did not look healthy. "Make yourself
useful? Save this food, will you? I should have let Harry handle all of this."