Chapter 11
Sirius was still grinning when he reached his next point of interest.
The old man looked like it was taking all of his self-control not to go ballistic while they were completing the transaction. When Sirius informed him that he would be returning next week to look at what he had in stock, Povetkin looked like all energy had left him. He had probably been hoping Sirius would leave him alone after getting what he wanted, but he had no such intentions. The store was an invaluable resource, since it supplied things unavailable anywhere else on the market, at least as far as Sirius was aware. Now that he seemingly had the guy in his pocket he would milk it for as many rare plants and ingredients as he could. Sirius had no compunctions about doing so since the old fucker was a nasty piece of work. Anyone would be hard-pressed to feel any compassion for him.
Bringing his amusement under control, Sirius got ready to attend to the next matter on the agenda.
It was not the first time he would be visiting this particular apothecary. He had already made rounds around most ingredient suppliers in Britain, browsing what they had to offer. He did not intend to buy any of their wares in bulk, but rather to look for rare samples to plant. With proper care, potions and some simple rituals you could revitalize almost any part of a plant and make it grow into a healthy seedling.
With house elves aplenty, always competing for who got more duties and seemingly never having enough, there would be no shortage of workforce anytime soon. With a careful application of warding almost any conditions could be emulated, so Sirius was looking to have as many different plants as he could. Eventually he was aiming to have a totally independent stores of supplies, with solid quantities coming in steadily. With both the colonies of magical creatures he established and the plantations growing steadily, in both size and variety, it was not such a faraway prospect. Buying a bit of every rare plant and creature he came across was a costly venture, but Sirius knew inflation already started and would not be slowing down anytime soon, so he saw no reason to sit on his gold.
This establishment was a family business, going back over two hundred years. The previous owners held on to some of the rarer ingredients over the years, some simply leftovers in too small quantities to be of any conventional use in potion-making, but that suited Sirius just fine. When they discussed it the owner readily agreed to sell them, seeing as Sirius offered a very good price from the start. He simply came to pick them up today.
When the bell rang a young woman rushed towards the counter from deeper within the store. "Welcome. How can I..." Sirius momentarily froze up at hearing her voice. She stopped mid-sentence when she spotted him. "Sirius?"
Sirius, resumed making his way towards her, focusing his attention on her face. "Isabelle?"
Looking at the beautiful blonde before him Sirius felt an odd mixture of happiness and apprehension. Without really thinking about it, he moved around the counter and hugged her.
He and Isabelle Greengrass knew one another from early childhood, as the Greengrass family was judged to be of an adequate pedigree by Sirius' parents to associate with. As such Isabelle, being but a year younger than him had regularly come over to Grimmauld Place for playdates with Sirius and some other 'noble scions'. Even then it was clear to both of them that it was all a part of some sort of posturing going on between their families. Sirius was constantly under pressure to somehow outmaneuver or take advantage of her from his mother. She used to go on lengthy rants about how the Greengrasses would make good servants, probably in an effort to impress upon Sirius not to view them as equals. Regardless of their families' expectations, by the time they were eleven and ten respectively they were really close. It was around the time he was getting ready for his first year at Hogwarts that things changed.
By now, with a bit of context, Sirius had a better understanding of what had transpired. The Greengrass family had been plagued by a curse for generations, probably as a result of an ancestor of theirs fucking with the wrong people. He had to have really offended someone for them to resort to damning his entire bloodline. Sirius was convinced it had to be a ritual, probably enacted to affect every descendant of the person sacrificed. It seemingly had a multitude of effects - weakening of the body, sudden bouts of pain and uncontrollable fluctuations of magic. All of that had pretty much prevented one from thriving in any ability that required any serious spellcasting. But more than that it often resulted in early deaths, particularly in males. Sirius would bet that not all of those details were intended by the casters, as rituals were not exactly a precise science. Still, the males seemed to experience much harsher symptoms, most of them dying during pregnancy or birth, the rest during early childhood.
The only reason the Greengrass family had not died out by then was the fortune they had accumulated previously. Otherwise, their line, made up almost exclusively of frail and sickly women, would get eaten alive by the scum that was magical Britain's high society. Even with the medical expenses and their limited career choices, the Greengrasses remained one of the prominent houses in Britain, simply by a combination of reinvesting, careful management of their fortune, and keeping their heads down.
Considering their situation before the Blood War, as it was now being called, it was quite understandable that they had to seek protection from another prominent family. With tensions running high and the followers of the Voldie running around threatening and extorting people, it was practically the only option left to Isabelle's mother, Ophelia, if she wanted to retain the family's inheritance. It was not as if she could simply report something of this nature to the government, as the faction in question had been practically running it at that point in time. Whole families had been killed and nothing was done about it. The Death Eaters were nigh untouchable by the law and the Greengrass family, with their mediocre magical ability, nonexistent political power, and a comparatively huge fortune, was a prime target for them.
And so Ophelia Greengrass jumped at the chance to ingratiate herself, and by extension her family, with the Black family, who for centuries had the reputation of the strongest dark family in Europe. For Sirius' parents, however, this situation had another appeal altogether. They saw a lone mother, suffering from severe health problems, and a seemingly healthy, but timid young girl. The last remaining members of an affluent and ancient family.
As far as Sirius was aware their plan was to either have her marry Regulus or become Sirius' second wife. They were likely leaning towards the latter as it would make it easier for the Black family to justify absorbing the Greengrass family holdings. That obviously changed once Sirius got to Hogwarts. In either case, they would make sure she did not conceive, possibly expedite her death if the illness was not severe or swift enough for their liking. It made Sirius sick even thinking about it.
Those plans thankfully did not come to fruition as the Greengrass matriarch thankfully seemed to realize what she was dealing with in time. She did not call his parents out on it but was cunning enough to decline in a way that implied she was undecided, without alienating them. As such, they were still granted a degree of protection from direct attacks, thanks mainly to Walburga's greed and superiority complex. Her over-the-top self-assurance prevented her from realizing that she was the one who was being taken advantage of.
While Sirius was in Hogwarts he and Isabelle had drifted apart somewhat, with him falling from grace with his family and the tensions between their Hogwarts houses at an all-time high, they simply spent too little time together. Their relationship had been rekindled when Sirius, enlisting the help of the other Marauders, took care of some of the creeps that had been harassing her. Later on, he snuck her out of the Slytherin dormitories a couple of times under James' cloak. They spent a few nights out in the castle, talking and running around. He even stole a few kisses. But it all started to fall apart when the war started.
When the news of Isabelle's engagement to a known Death Eater sympathizer came up Sirius was furious. Apparently, his parents' patience had run out and, without the paltry protection they offered, Lady Greengrass had no other choice but to acquiesce to these demands. With her health declining further, she no doubt felt she had to do something to secure a future for Isabelle and their family, whatever it may be before she passed away. While Sirius adored Isabelle and would not change a thing about her, even he had to admit that she would not be able to take all that pressure on her own. She would be hard-pressed to get any concessions and would likely end up being intimidated or brute-forced into acceptance of the first deal offered. It seemed like a better option was to let her mother work out an agreement so that at least some advantages were granted to her.
Sirius wanted desperately to help her out of this predicament but there was little he could do. At that point in time, he was just a teenager, living on the goodwill of the Potters. Deep down he knew he could not blame Isabelle for the situation they were forced into but he was not mature enough to stop himself from harboring some resentment. Considering that both of them were struggling with their own troubles and had little time for one another, it was no surprise whatever relationship they had fizzled out.
Sirius pulled back a bit after a minute. Keeping hold of Isabelle's hips he took a half step back to take a better look at her blushing face.
"Wow, it's really great to see you. You look beautiful as always." Sirius grinned widely, making a show of looking her over.
"Thank you. It's great to see you as well." She blushed further, stuttering a bit.
"How have you been? Are you doing ok?"
Seemingly a little uncomfortable at the attention she was receiving she fidgeted a little. "I am doing fine, Sirius. Better than I believed possible for a long time. How are-"
Unable to help himself Sirius pulled her closer for another hug.
"Sorry. I guess I got a bit caught up in my emotions. You would not believe how relieved I am, hearing that." He whispered in her ear. The way things ended between them had bugged him for a long time. He sort of felt like he abandoned her in her time of need, not making any effort to keep in touch just because he could not have her for himself. Sighing he let go of her completely and backed away. "Sorry." He repeated sheepishly noticing her embarrassment.
"And how is your... fiance?" Sirius grimaced as he spoke the last word.
"He died in a raid, years ago. Just before my graduation actually." Here Isabelle looked at him quizzically.
"Ahhh..." Sirius had to consciously stop himself from checking on the scum for as long as he could remember, lest he did something he would regret. Well, he was not sure he would even regret it, whatever the consequences may be. "I purposefully avoided checking up on you. I have a bit of a temper if you remember, and I wasn't sure I would be able to control myself. I did not want to just make the situation worse with my interference." Sirius grinned mirthlessly.
"Oh..." Isabelle started awkwardly but pressed on. "I feel like I'm rather well-informed on what's been going on with you. It seems to be a matter of public record after all. You've been in the papers quite a bit lately."
Sirius preened and pushed his chest out, striking a heroic pose.
"Ah, yes. I don't know if you've heard but I'm a public figure now. The leader of the nation. Spearheading the cultural and political revolution. The very picture of grace and power. Every woman that has had the privilege of laying her eyes on me will forever forward compare all other men to me, and they will inevitably fall short. The guilt for causing all that heartbreak is quite crushing, but, alas, that is the burden I must carry." Looking into the distance Sirius made a face that he felt appropriately sorrowful.
"I'm sure." Isabelle rolled her eyes. She seemed to be coming out of her shell after his joke.
Sirius hoped that by being acting so familiar with her he would rekindle some of the closeness they once shared. It seemed to have the desired effect so he plowed through.
He scoffed keeping up with his role. "Haven't you read about my heroic exploits? I am practically the messiah bringing enlightenment down on you peasants. A god made flesh."
"Hmph." She snorted. "Does Amelia agree with that assessment?"
"You know each other?" Sirius blinked, suddenly feeling a bit awkward.
"Well we're not friends or anything but we've met a couple of times. So? You haven't answered my question. Should I ask Amelia to curb your arrogance a bit?" Isabell smirked as she teased him.
Sirius sighed. The slytherin tendencies manifested in her sometimes, 7 years in that type of environment are bound to have an effect on anybody. An unfortunate blemish on someone otherwise so nice and cute. Thankfully he had an idea on how to cut those undesirable tendencies in a bud.
"Oh well, why talk about her?" Sirius stepped forward and brought his face forward so that their noses were touching. "I never could help myself from flirting with pretty girls. You should know that better than anyone." Sirius continued as he laid his hand on her cheek and started to lightly stroke it. Isabelle's eyes were wide and her breath hitched. "It's just the two of us now, isn't it?" She closed her eyes as Sirius leaned forward further. At the last moment, just as their lips were about to meet, he laid a fleeting kiss on her cheek and stepped back.
"Well, I don't know about you but I came here to take care of business matters. Why don't you help me out first? I'm sure there will be plenty of time for you to seduce me later." Sirius winked at her cheekily, strolling back around the counter.
"You... you..." Isabelle seemed lost for words, but her speechlessness was quickly transitioning into fury. Sirius realized too late that he might have overdone it a little. It was probably a bit insensitive considering their past.
'Fuck me.' Sirius thought as he saw her eyes narrowing, his thoughts snapping back to reality as she reached for her wand.
END
