"There's nothing there," Natalie said plainly. They were all standing in the middle of a square in London, looking across at a patch of dead grass in between number eleven and number thirteen Grimmauld Place.

Sirius placed a hand on her shoulder and chuckled. "Muggles can't see it, love," he explained.

"How am I supposed to live there if I can't see it?" she asked him, exasperated.

"Trust me," he said simply. She allowed him to lead her over to the blank patch of grass, stumbling when her feet ran into something. She clutched little Jamie tightly and frowned at Sirius. He tried to suppress a smile. "It's a step, Nat," he told her, stepping up. She followed up three more steps, trying to hide the thrill of shock that went through her when she looked down and realized she was standing on thin air.

Sirius took out his wand and tapped the seemingly empty air, his wand making a hollow sound. Suddenly, a house materialized in front of them. Natalie gasped over the sound of many locks and chains undoing themselves, gaping at Sirius as he pushed the door open and gestured her inside.

They were standing in a long, dim hallway. Natalie looked around as the others stepped inside behind her. Remus spoke first. "Nice place, Padfoot," he joked.

Sirius spun to face him with a loud shush, but not before a horrible screeching filled the hallway. Natalie felt her face drain of color as she staggered into Mr. Weasley. James was screaming to match the volume of the disembodied voice. It took Natalie several moments to register the words. "Filth! Blood-traitors! Werewolves! Muggles in my home! How dare you taint the ancient and noble house of Black! How dare-"

Sirius hurried forward down the hallway, shouting, "Shutup, you horrible old hag!" He stopped before a portrait of a woman on the wall. Giving his wand an irritated flick, he closed the moth-eaten curtains framing the picture as Natalie managed to quiet James. He came back towards the astonished group, a sheepish look on his face. "My mother," he said, by way of explanation. "Sorry, should have warned you."

Natalie raised an eyebrow. "Well, I'm certainly glad I never had to meet her when she was alive," she deadpanned in a whisper.

Mr. Weasley stifled a chuckle as Sirius gestured for them to follow him down the hallway. They tiptoed past the painting silently, Natalie determinedly keeping her eyes averted from the horrible portrait.

Sirius led them into a large kitchen paved with flagstones and warmed by a giant fireplace on one wall. He motioned for them to have a seat along the long wooden table, summoning goblets from a cupboards and producing a flagon of elder wine. Mr. Weasley politely refused. After making his excuses, he left for his job at the Ministry, promising his wife that he would be back in time for dinner.

Natalie looked up from tickling her son's toes. "Sirius, where is Jamie going to sleep?" she asked.

"In our room, love." Sirius looked surprised. "Why?"

"I was hoping there'd be enough room for us to fit out a nursery for him," Natalie said hopefully.

He waved a hand helplessly, gesturing at the cobwebs that were gathered in the corners and the thick layer of dust that coated every surface. "No one has lived here since my parents died," he told her. "This place will need an awful lot of cleaning up first, darling. It's not exactly hospitable right now."

Mrs. Weasley snorted. "Not exactly habitable, I'd say."

Sirius, his pride wounded, gave her a cold look. "I know it's not the best, Molly, but it's all we have. I would think the Order would appreciate the generosity I've shown."

Natalie met Remus' eyes and shook her head. It seemed like Sirius and Mrs. Weasley would never be able to get along peaceably. Sirius' haughty arrogance didn't help matters. Natalie loved her husband, but he could be somewhat rude at times.

"Molly, would you mind starting dinner?" Remus broke in kindly. "Natalie can help you- I don't want her exerting herself yet. Sirius and I will throw out the damaged furniture and do the deep scrubbing. We can tackle the rest tomorrow."

Remus certainly had a way with calming down a situation, Natalie mused. He was definitely a peacemaker- he seemed distraught whenever there was tension among his friends.

Sirius met his best friend's eye and nodded. "All right," he conceded. "We should start in the drawing room, then, I suppose. It will give us somewhere to sit, at least." He frowned when he noticed that Natalie's teeth were chattering in the cold of the basement kitchen. Unfastening his traveling cloak, he wrapped it around her shoulders, hugging her close. "We'll get this done as quickly as we can," he told her. "So you can have a proper house to putter around in."

Natalie smiled and kissed his cheek. "Get on, the kitchen's for women only. You're slowing down dinner."

He laughed and followed Remus out of the kitchen. "All right, all right, quit nagging me, wife!" he threw over his shoulder in an exasperated tone. His black robes whipped around the corner as the two men disappeared from sight. Natalie giggled and turned to Mrs. Weasley. "Help me find a box or something to lay James in for now, Molly," she said. "Then we can get started on dinner."

They discovered an old crate that had previously held butterbeer bottles in the cupboard. Natalie lined it with Sirius' cloak, more concerned about James' comfort than her own. He simply gurgled and kicked his feet in the air when she placed him in the makeshift cradle, sucking on his tiny fist and staring at her with wide eyes.

Mrs. Weasley had already hung the cauldron over the fireplace to boil when Natalie turned around. She pointed towards the table, where a cutting board, knife, and a stack of raw carrots had appeared. "If you'll just cut those, dear…" she said, turning to rummage through the cupboards.

Natalie walked over to the table and started slicing the carrots, humming to herself. She caught movement in the corner of her eye and turned. An ugly, bat-eared creature was standing at the end of the table, dressed in a loincloth made from what looked like a soiled pillowcase. It was short and stooped, the top of its head barely clearing her elbow. Tufts of white hair sprouted from its ears, and its large, watery eyes were fixed on Natalie in an expression of intense dislike.

Natalie screamed in surprise and jumped backwards, pointing the knife at it defensively. Behind her, James woke and began to fuss loudly. "Who- what- are you?" she asked, the knife shaking in her hand.

The thing narrowed its eyes. "Master has brought a Muggle into the house," he muttered, looking her up and down. "What would poor Kreacher's Mistress say? Poor Mistress, filthy Muggles and Mudbloods in her home-"

Loud footsteps sounded in the hallway as Sirius and Remus rounded the corner at a run, wands raised. Sirius glanced at his wife before following her gaze to the stooped form in front of her. "Ah, Kreacher, I forgot about you," he said, more to himself than to the being.

Remus crossed the room in two strides, taking the knife from Natalie and laying it back down on the table. He smoothed her hair back, noting that she was shivering- from fear or cold, he wasn't sure. "It's all right, Nat," he said soothingly. "He's a house elf. I forgot to warn you- most old wizarding homes have one."

Natalie looked over his shoulder at the house elf. "It's ugly," she hissed under her breath. "And it can talk, Remus."

The elf continued to stare at her, muttering in what he apparently thought was a whisper, but which was in actuality more of a normal speaking voice. "Kreacher may be ugly, but Kreacher only works for pure-bloods. Kreacher will not stay here if there is a Muggle here, oh no. Poor Mistress, if she only knew there was a Muggle in the house-"

"What's his problem?" Natalie interrupted Kreacher's ramblings.

Sirius frowned, still considering the elf. "He's served my family for generations, and his family before him. Apparently, like most house elves, he's come to agree with pureblood philosophy."

Kreacher was now staring back at Sirius, his large eyes popping. "Master Sirius is back, Kreacher thought he was gone. Master Sirius is a blood traitor, ho yes, he broke poor Mistress' heart when he ran away. Now he brings a Muggle here- what would Mistress say?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Shutup, Kreacher," he said in a bored sort of tone, and Natalie noticed that even though the elf's mouth continued to form words, no sound came out. He stopped and glared at Sirius.

"Natalie is your Mistress now, Kreacher, and you will address her as such," Sirius said coldly. "If I catch you calling her a Muggle again, I will mount your head on the wall with all of the others."

Remus started. "Sirius, surely that's a bit-"

Sirius ignored him. "Go away, Kreacher- go clean something," he told the elf, and with one last terrible scowl at Sirius, Kreacher disappeared with a loud "CRACK!"

Natalie jumped at the sound, and Remus' hands tightened on her forearms to steady her. She stared at the spot where the elf had stood, disgust written on her face. "What was that- thing?" she asked.

Remus explained. "House elves are bound to the blood line that they serve. They must obey any order that they receive from a member of that family." He looked over his shoulder at Sirius. "Apparently, Kreacher isn't too fond of Sirius, but he still has to obey him."

"Stupid elf," Sirius said, shrugging. He looked over at his wife. "Just stay away from him, darling; he's not worth bothering with, the old codger." He raked a hand through his hair, causing it to fall elegantly back in place. "Everything all right then?" he asked, glancing over at Mrs. Weasley. The two women nodded mutely, and Sirius raised his wand. "Come on, then, Moony," he said to Remus. "I want to get that boggart out of the writing desk before it scares Jamie half to death."

The two men wandered back out of the room, and Natalie went back to slicing carrots, wondering what sort of childhood her husband had endured in this uninviting old mansion. Being back here had certainly not improved his mood.