Sirius made his way down Diagon Alley, his pockets clinking with coins after a visit to Gringotts. He was looking for a certain shop that he'd walked by a hundred times, but never visited. It was quite annoying, he thought, that he couldn't find the place. It had to be here somewhere…
At last, he spotted it. A battered sign over the door read "The Magical Treasure Chest." A large store window showcased a variety of unusual magical objects, among them an enormous crystal ball, several huge gemstones, and a large, ornate mirror. This had to be the place.
He opened the door and stepped into the shop. Chimes hanging from the door jingled loudly as he entered. Sirius wondered how the store's employees weren't driven mad by having to listen to that all day. However it soon became apparent that the shop was filled with a myriad of other noises. Strange instruments that Sirius couldn't identify whirred and spun from their positions on shelves along the walls. He was reminded of the many delicate instruments in Dumbledore's office.
Sirius was admiring a large display of astronomical instruments, including telescopes and rotating models of the heavens, when he heard a voice behind him. "Can I help you with anything?" Sirius turned and saw an old man in shabby turquoise robes and oval glasses.
"Yeah, is Marlene working today?"
"She's in the back. I'll go get her." The man turned and left, disappearing through a door behind the register. A moment later he re-emerged, Marlene behind him.
"Sirius! What a nice surprise!" she greeted him with a smile. As she stepped out from behind the counter, he got a good look at her outfit. It was unusual, even for Marlene. She wore dark purple robes cut to just above the knee, black silk stockings, and high heels. Sirius had never seen robes cut so short before, not even on his cousins, and he certainly appreciated the style. It gave him a nice view of her legs. He was surprised that she wore such an outfit to work, but apparently it was allowed.
"You look… stunning," he said.
"Thanks. Sirius, this is my boss, Thaddeus Slater. Thaddeus, this is Sirius Black. He's my boyfriend."
"Ah," said Thaddeus before turning to look at Sirius. "Nice to meet you."
"The same," he replied.
"Thaddeus, do you mind if I talk to Sirius for a bit?" Marlene asked.
"Oh, certainly. I'll mind the shop," said Thaddeus.
Marlene led Sirius into the back room. It was a small, dark room, lit only by a single lamp which stood on a roll-top desk near the door. Shelves lined with more strange magical objects covered the walls. Marlene took a seat in the chair by the desk and conjured a second chair for Sirius to sit in. "It's a pleasant surprise to see you here. I wasn't expecting you to come by today," she began.
Sirius smiled. "I had to go to Gringotts, so I figured I might as well see if you were working. I'm surprised your boss is letting you off to talk to me. I mean, we could be shagging in here." His smile transformed into a wicked grin.
"Thaddeus is an easygoing sort. Besides, it's nearly my lunch hour." She reached into the desk and took out a lunch bag. "Have you eaten?"
"I just got a sandwich at the Leaky Cauldron before coming over here."
Marlene made a face. "My experience with the Leaky Cauldron food hasn't been pleasant."
"The sandwiches are fine; it's the soups you ought to stay away from. Of course, I prefer the Three Broomsticks."
Marlene took a sandwich of her own out of the lunchbag. "Sometimes I go to one of those Muggle places around here for lunch, but eating out every day gets expensive." She took a bite of her sandwich.
"You've got some really interesting stuff in here," Sirius observed as he studied the room more closely.
Marlene opened a Muggle soda can and took a sip. "Some of it is used. People sell it to us. The rest is new, which we get from the makers. We do rather well; the only other store around specializing in unusual and powerful magical objects is Borgin and Burke's, down Knockturn Alley."
Sirius remembered going in there once with his parents. "I like this place better. I've been by it loads of times, but I've never been inside until now."
Marlene took out a clump of grapes and popped one into her mouth. Sirius was suddenly distracted by the mental image of himself reclining on a lounge, being fed grapes by a scantily-clad Marlene. He smiled.
It didn't escape her notice. "Do I want to know what you're thinking about?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Well, do you want to feed me grapes while wearing an Arabian Nights-sort of costume?"
"How do you know the Arabian Nights? I can't imagine your parents approved of Muggle literature, from what you've told me."
"My uncle Alphard read them to me whenever he babysat me and Regulus. But what about my question?" He gave her a very wicked grin.
"Well, I suppose that could be arranged. Perhaps it could be a birthday treat." Marlene's smile matched Sirius's own.
"But my birthday's not till December!" he whined.
Marlene's grin widened. "The wait will make it more enjoyable."
"Could I have one of your grapes anyway?" he asked.
"Of course."
Sirius plucked one from the stem and put it in his mouth. Marlene watched his hand with a strange expression on her face. "What is it?"
"Oh, there's just something I've been curious about for a while," Marlene admitted.
"Is it another question about my childhood?"
"No. It's about that ring you always wear, on your right hand. What is it?"
Sirius looked down at his right hand. On his ring finger was a silver ring shaped like a pair of serpents entwined and decorated with a row of alternating diamonds and emeralds. "It's a family heirloom. I got it when I was fifteen; I guess they thought maybe that it would get me to be a 'proper' Black." He put his hand on the desk, letting the gemstones on the ring catch the light.
"Why didn't you take it off when you left your family?" she asked.
"I tried to, but it won't come off. I tried magic and Muggle methods, but nothing works. I'd really like to get rid of it," Sirius explained.
"Did you try using oil to slide it off?"
"Yeah, that and water. I tried severing it with Diffindo too. Nothing."
"Hm, that's odd. Maybe it likes you," she said.
Sirius laughed. "A Black family heirloom, like me? But I'm the family disgrace, the 'shame of her flesh' as my dear old mum put it."
"What if she didn't disinherit you? What if it still recognizes you as the heir?" Marlene suggested.
"Oh, no, she definitely disinherited me. Regulus told me that she burned me off the family tree, so there's really no doubt she disinherited me too."
Marlene looked thoughtfully at the ring. "Is it magic?"
"Probably. Most Black family heirlooms are," said Sirius.
"You really should try to find out if it is or not. I mean who knows? It might have powers that could be useful."
Sirius looked down at the ring. He'd always hated it; always wanted to be rid of it. There was a part of him which was reluctant to admit that the ring could be useful, but the fact of the matter was that any magical artifact that could help him survive the war was to be utilized.
"I could help you try to figure out its powers," she offered. "I do that sort of thing all the time here."
"All right," he conceded. "But knowing my family, it's probably full of Dark magic."
Marlene took out her wand and gave the ring a tap. Nothing happened. She repeated the motion. Still nothing happened. "Hmm," she muttered, "maybe you should give it a go."
Sirius, holding his wand in his left hand, gave the ring a tap. Immediately the gems began to glow with a vibrant inner light. "Well, that did something. Might kill me next, but…"
"Nothing's going to kill you while I'm here," Marlene cut him off. "I think you've awakened its powers now. We just need to figure out what they are." She touched the ring with her wand once more before chanting in a language Sirius didn't know, but he thought might be Latin. The gems blazed even brighter than they had when he'd tapped it with his own wand. Marlene's eyes closed in concentration.
After a few moments of this, the light began to fade. Marlene's eyes opened and she looked at Sirius. "It's protective," she said. "Its magic is to protect, not to attack. I don't think we need to worry about it killing you."
"Well, that's a relief," he quipped. "What was that spell you did? I've never seen anything like it before."
"It's a spell to make a magical object reveal the nature of its powers. We use it all the time here," explained Marlene. She took a sip of her soda. "I think we should do a bit of experimenting to find out exactly how its protective magic works." Without any further warning, she fired a non-verbal spell at him.
Sirius resisted the urge to dodge the spell and shout "Protego!" Doing the only thing he could possibly think of to test the ring, he thrust his right arm into the path of the spell. The flash of oncoming light was absorbed, and the ring glowed brightly before returning to its original state.
"That was interesting," said Marlene dryly.
Sirius looked down at the ring again. "It seems to work like a Shield Charm."
"You could use it to block spells while casting others. You could stay on the attack."
"I'll need to get used to it."
"Well," Marlene began, "I'm perfectly willing to help you practice." She gave him a very wicked grin.
"Oh, I'm sure you would. I'd almost rather face a Death Eater in battle than practice dueling with you." It was becoming more and more apparent to Sirius that Marlene thought of dueling as a sort of foreplay. She was always up for a shag afterwards, and Sirius had to admit he found that sexy.
She laughed for a moment before realization dawned on her face. "Oh! This reminds me- my parents have invited you over for dinner next Saturday. We could do a bit of practice dueling afterward, I don't think they would mind."
Of all the places Sirius expected Marlene to invite him, dinner at her parents' house wasn't one of them. It wasn't that long ago that he was there, after all. "They've invited me over for dinner?" he managed to say.
"Yeah. I guess they thought it was appropriate, since we're kind of officially a couple now."
He'd never been invited over for dinner by the family of a girl he was dating. Although to be honest, he'd had very few relationships that progressed far enough for him to meet the parents of the girls he dated at all. James's parents used to invite him over for Sunday lunch, but that was different considering they'd essentially adopted him. "Dinner would be great," he said.
There was a knock on the stockroom door. "That must be Thaddeus," said Marlene. "He's probably wondering exactly what we're doing in here."
Sirius laughed and stood. "See you later tonight?"
"Of course," said Marlene. She stood and gave him a kiss. "My flat."
Sirius left the Magical Treasure Chest in a very good mood.