I sighed as I entered the ancient building. My so called, "Ancestral Home." To bad I am not part of this family. Kreacher is of course nice. So was Baba Black, her picture is still kind to me. She's hideous though in that picture. I remember telling her to wear the pink dress that day… Oh well, I hope no uninvited guests decided to visit while I was gone like last time. I don't recall what those creature were, I think they were pixies, but either way they were really annoying to get rid of…
"Baba! Kreacher!" I called. "I'm home." Kreacher was getting old. The poor dear ran as fast as he could into my arms. The house had gotten dusty while I was away. Luckily it isn't to bad, he tries hard her really does, he's just so old.
"Welcome home dear," My Baba's portrait says kindly.
I looked to Kreacher. "I hope we didn't get any new guests like last time."
It was the painting that responded, "Actually we got a number of uninvited visitors while you were gone." I sighed, the prospect of having to clean more pixies or more things than pixies really didn't appeal to me. "So," she smiled. "How was your trip?"
"It was lots of fun, I love the beach. It was so beautiful there. Look at my tan," I raised my sleeves to show her the tan that had come from a faded burn. She didn't need to know that part though; I really didn't feel like getting yelled about it. I smiled, but the smile made me feel guilty because I was thinking of all the muggle friends that I had been hanging out with these past few weeks. She didn't know about them. To tell her would break her heart. She wanted me to marry the most self-centered, arrogant, idiotic… oh well he's just awful! Draco Malfoy. When I find the right person for me I'll know and I'll get to pull out my mother's wedding kimono.
My parents died a long time ago. I'm all that's left as far as I'm told. I'm supposed to live as she did and I don't want to disappoint her, but I can't… I can't hate muggles the way she does. It's just not in me. To be who I am would break her and Kreacher's hearts. They'd call me blood traitors. I love them and owe them so much. They took me in 15 years ago when my father died and raised me as their own. They never told me who my father was, just that he killed my mother. At night, I have dreams, about a boy being hit with a green light and it coming straight at me. I giggled reaching for it, but somebody got in the way. The person holding me took it into himself and saved me.
"Miss…" Kreacher had been calling me.
"Yes Kreacher?" I asked and smiled. I can't believe I let myself get so wrapped up in myself.
"Perhaps you should bathe and come eat something."
"That sounds nice. There aren't any unexpected visitors in my rooms upstairs is there?"
"No ma'am, Kreacher took care of that, here is the key to your rooms."
"Thank you Kreacher," I leaned down to kiss him as I took the key. I walked up the dark and dismal stairs to where my room was. It's the only colorful place in the house. My room is a beautiful baby blue and my bathroom is a soft pink. When I was a baby, Baba told me, I cried every night until she made my room colorful. When I was little things were so dismal I nearly died till she put me back in my colorful and bright room. She said I couldn't survive without colorful things around me.
I miss my Baba a lot. When she died Kreacher did his best, but now it seems I take care of Kreacher. He takes orders from that portrait, honestly I'm wondering if her spirit maybe got locked into that portrait. I don't know quite how these paintings worked. Quite frankly I didn't feel like thinking about it now.
As I sank into the hot water I sighed. What should I do? How long can I hide all this from my Baba and from my friends? Hmm? I thought I just heard my bedroom door open. Well it's probably just Kreacher. This room is guarded against all magical worries. I put my headphones on and just sank back into the tub and shut my eyes allowing my body to relax with the music when I felt course hands grab me and pull me up out of the tub. "What?" I screamed confused as I came face to face with one of the most gruesome looking men I've ever seen. I grabbed my towel and wrapped my body as he pulled me from the tub.
"Who are you?" He growled, "What are you doing here and how did you get here?"
"Excuse me?" I stared at him in disbelief. "I live here! Can I inquire how you got in and what your doing here?"
"This is my parents house."
"This is my Ancestral Home!"
"You're not a black are you?"
"No, but I was raised as one, this house was left to me it is mine!"
"No, it's mine. I'm Sirius Black." I gasped Sirius Black. Baba said he was a blood traitor. "Get out of my house."
"I told you it was left to me." I said coming out of shock. "It's mine. You have some nerve telling me to get out of my home." Silence passed for a few moments when a stocky red haired woman bounded up to my room.
"Oh, Sirius I see you got this door," she stopped as she saw me standing there in a bath towel. "Opened…"
"Yeah," he said, "this is what I found."
"Will you let go already?" I asked getting impatient that he still had a hard grip on me. "You're cutting off circulation."
"Who are you?"
"My name's Marina. Marina Rose Black. This is my house, who are you people and why are you here? My god I mean I leave for a while to go to the beach I come back to find my home over-run."
"Oh dear, Sirius did you have a little sister?"
"No, and no Molly I didn't have any nieces or nephews either."
"Then how?"
"Baba adopted me." I told them. "She took me in when I was small and her and Kreacher cared for me these many years. I owe them both a great deal."
"Sirius." The red-haired woman said. She appeared to not really know what to say.
"I want you out!" Great, he's shouting again.
"For the last time this is my house you can't exactly kick me out. Look," I sighed, "Perhaps we can discuss this while I have clothes on… Hmm? How does that sound to everyone?"
"Oh of course." Mrs. Weasley shoved Sirius out of the room and left me to change.
Okay what to wear now. I could wear something trendy. Or would gothic be more affective? It has to be powerful. I need to show them whose house this is. I began to pick out my clothes.
"Is this going to take long?" I heard Sirius yell from behind the door.
"Meet me downstairs. I'll be down in twenty or thirty minutes."
"What?"
"Sirius hush!" Mrs. Weasley's voice scolded him as I could hear him being pushed and scolded for being so loud. She was saying something about being lucky about not having woken everyone else up.
Everyone else? Great. Well if there is everyone else perhaps some will be cute boys. Better look nice. Okay what have we got to work with? I allowed my long blue-black hair to fall down to my shoulders as I looked in the mirror. I was always an enigma to people. My eyes fell in the beautiful way Chinese eyes did. I always loved that. I thought the curve was beautiful, but instead of brown I had beautiful blue eyes and the most fragile pale skin. My hair was wavy. Perfect waves every day, but for the most part I straightened it. Blue-black hair in waves even when natural just looks and feels fake to me, you know?
I looked in the mirror and decided the dark eyeliner, slight lavender toned lips, and pale complexion was good for makeup and now my outfit. I chose a cute, red kimono top with a short black skirt to match it and I chose black Chinese slippers to complete my outfit.
Now that that's out of the way my hair, what should I do with it? It was in waves after I was pulled from the bath. I wondered if I should bother to straighten it. No, if they didn't like it this way to bad for them I thought as I walked downstairs. They wanted to throw me out after all so they could take me as I am.
"There you are." Mrs. Weasley greeted me as I walked into the room.
"Yes," I smiled gently, "We have much to discuss."
"Yes, we do." She looked rather grave about it.
"How do you see this place?" Sirius asked suddenly.
"Well I live here."
"That's right," The person he called Molly said, you just know Weasley's when you see them, "There's a spell on the house you shouldn't be able to see it. Nobody who wasn't told by the secret keeper should be able to."
"Secret keeper, oh so that's what that weird note was about."
"Weird note?" Sirius asked. I couldn't help but notice he's getting more civil by the minute.
"I got a note with just my address written on it, then it went up in a flame. I mean it lit itself."
"It must have been from Dumbledore, Sirius." Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.
"I think we should send someone for him Molly."
Just then there was a crash in the fireplace. "That won't be necessary Sirius." Said a kind, old voice from the fire. "Yes I did send the note to her."
"But why?" They asked.
"Well," he looked at them then at me and winked, "How would you feel if you went on vacation and suddenly your house was no longer where you left it?"
"This is serious," Sirius shouted at him. How rude, he was making a good point I thought. "How did you even know she was living here when I didn't?"
"Ah," he looked relieved, "see that I can answer. I was the one that brought her to live here 15 years ago on Halloween night. The night her father died."
"15 years ago on Halloween?" Mrs. Weasley looked faint.
"Yes, she was no more than a few hours old. How have you been my dear?" I was confused as anything.
"Fine I suppose. I mean I'm like all teenagers, moody, rebellious, but I have great friends."
"Ah, but they're mostly all muggles aren't they?"
I blushed as I suddenly found my feet very interesting. "Yes," I replied shyly.
"What?" Sirius asked.
"You've been hiding the fact that you've had muggle friends from your Baba this whole time."
"I don't," I confessed, "I don't want to disappoint her or Kreacher. I love them and I owe them so much, but I can 't be like them."
"So," Dumbledore looked sternly at Sirius, "She stays." I couldn't tell if he was asking or telling him, but Sirius sighed in defeat.
"Good." Mrs. Weasley clapped her hands together. "Well you already have a room so why don't you go finish your bath and then come down to breakfast. There are young gentlemen who will be dining with you." She winked at me. Does this mean I can stay? I didn't question it aloud I just did what I was told. Once I had left they had continued their conversation.
"Why did you say she could stay?" Sirius demanded.
"Because she will be the one who decides the end of the great war it is all placed in her hands and I'd rather keep her here and safe before we have to allow her near the dark." With that he left them to their thoughts. "Oh," he turned before he left, "If you tell her or anyone else I'm fairly sure the dark will prosper so don't tell a soul. Let's give ourselves a fighting chance. Voldemort's daughter is more powerful then her father could ever imagine." He apparated right before Harry and Ron walked in to see a very shocked Sirius and Mrs. Weasley.
Well I'm in my room, but I see no reason to take a shower now. Well I can put up my hair and soak a bit more, after downstairs I could use it. I sighed as I let the water out to refill it. My original water got cold. I heard the door creak and now that they know I'm here I doubt they'll disturb me. "How lucky, the door was just open." It was a girl's voice. I got up and locked my bathroom door as I heard them rummaging. I wouldn't let it go on for too long, but I was interested in them.
"Look at this."
"Oh how pretty."
"Could these have been Sirius' mothers?" Slowly I opened the bathroom door, they didn't even notice. I was fully dressed and looking quite formidable."Actually, they belong to me and I'll thank you to stop rummaging."
They gasped as they turned to face me. "Who are you?" Asked a bushy haired brunette.
"My name's Marina. Marina Rose Black."
"In other words," The brunette replied smugly, "the black rose of the sea."
"Yes." I looked to where creature always put the black roses. "As you can see I am not the only black rose in this world." They were enchanted.
"So," a red-haired girl asked meekly, "What are you?"
"What do you mean?"
"How did you find this place?"
"I live here. This house is mine."
"This house belongs to Sirius." The brunette shot in.
"Then would u like to tell me your names before we continuing arguing further?" I implored trying to distract them.
"I'm Ginny… Weasley." She was energetic but when the brunette glared at her she looked ashamed. Some friend.
"I'm Hermione Granger." She sounded so bored.
"Right, well I'm going down stairs I'd appreciate it if the two of you didn't destroy anything but feel free to rummage I got some good stuff that may fit you both." With that I waved as I swung my hips from side to side in the model like manner just to irk little miss perfect. Then dropping that I yawned as I made my way downstairs. "I'm back!" I knew that was a little to perky but who cares. That's when I noticed two cute boys looking at me. 'There are young gentlemen who will be dining with you.' That's right. I suddenly found my feet interesting as my face became flushed.
"Hi." The red-haired boy beamed at me.
"H-Hi." The brunette stuttered.
"Welcome my dear, this is my son Ronald." She pointed to the red head.
"Ron." He muttered. She appeared to ignore him as she went on.
"And this is Harry." She was positively beaming at this introduction. It was almost too much. Like she knew something I didn't.
"Hi Harry." I responded gently as I sat next to him. I was still blushing feverishly and sitting next to him didn't help. For some reason it made it worse. Probably because he's so much more attractive than I am. It's funny I can have such low self-esteem with a superiority complex.
"Um… I hope you don't mind my asking, but how exactly did you get here and who are you?" He asked. I sighed. How many times would I have to answer this? Luckily Mrs. Weasley answered for me.
"She is the daughter of a very evil wizard. He was killed the day she was born and Dumbledore brought her here. She became a Black."
"I'm going to get dressed mate." Ron left. I thought he was dressed. Mrs. Weasley and Sirius also left.
"So…" Harry twitched nervously. "What's your name?"
"I am Marina Rose Black. It's been an interesting morning for me."
"Oh, really?" He seemed excited that I gave him a topic to go into. "What happened?"
"Well, I came home from vacation. Went to take a bath, was ripped out of my tub to face that man Sirius and Mrs. Weasley. I had to defend myself so as not to get kicked out before someone named Dumbledore showed up and told them I was staying. His word seemed to settle things. Then they sent me up to get ready for breakfast. Most of the time I didn't know what they were going to do with me."
"That does sound interesting. So your parents are dead?"
"Yes."
"So are mine."
"I'm so sorry to hear that." I offered my sympathies for him with a knowing heart of the pain and emptiness that leaves in a person.
"It's fine. My parents died protecting me."
I sighed. "That's how my father died. I wasn't more than a few hours old, but somehow I remember it. I see it in my dreams."
"You're father must have been a great man."
"I suppose." I looked to Harry. "I'm sure your parents were wonderful people." I smiled at him. "Sometimes personality traits are genetic. If you got some from them they had to have been wonderful."
"Yours too." He blushed.
"What were your parents names?" I asked. Perhaps I've heard of them.
"James and Lily Potter, yours?"
"Well… I don't know my mother's name and the only word they would give me for my father was Voldemort." Harry seemed to stiffen.
"Oh." Was all he said. He found his hands oddly interesting as a look I knew took over his face. Serious thinking was required. "Harry?" I asked almost scared to interrupt his thoughts.
"I'm sorry I have something to do." He got up and simply walked away. I wonder, did I do something wrong?